This year’s Colorado ballot includes Amendment T, an amendment that would remove language in the Colorado Constitution that allows slavery and involuntary work to be used as punishment when a person is convicted of a crime.
Similar to the U.S. Constitution, the Colorado Constitution states, “there shall never be in this state either slavery or involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted.”
Those in prison are currently required to work unless they are approved for an education program. If the offenders do not work, they may lose privileges or receive a delayed parole eligibility date. If the amendment passes, it would abolish this form of punishment, meaning that those incarcerated will no longer be forced to work.
American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado supports Amendment T stating, “words matter. We weren’t around to take part in the abolition of slavery after the Civil War, but Amendment T gives us an opportunity to finish that abolition today, at least for Colorado. Slavery in any circumstance is immoral, and it is not a Colorado value.”
Reverend Eric Banner, Assistant Minister of Jefferson Unitarian Church in Golden, also made a public announcement through Together Colorado on the amendment.
“On it’s own, the change is just a small thing. It won’t shutter our prisons or end mass incarceration on its own. But it is a step. A necessary step. And we must stand for it because we stand for the basic worth and dignity of every person. And as long as we treat people as slaves while they are incarcerated, we will produce people who have developed a slave’s mindset. An institutionalized mind. A way of being that has neither dignity nor preparation for life on the outside.”
The language that currently exists within the Colorado constitution is a reminder of our history with slavery, as well as the current racism that still takes place in society today.
The removal of this language is not only a progression from our history of racism, but it is a symbol of our wish to work towards the abolition of the state’s current reality of racism that exists. Voting that we don’t want slavery under any circumstances shows our willingness to work towards getting rid of all forms of racism. This is particularly important with the current racial tensions that exist hroughout the nation.
In order for progression to happen, we must get rid of our history of slavery. As a college student and American citizen, I know it is my duty to help our nation progress towards a more equal society.
