GLIDE is a proud supporter of Proposition 6, the End Slavery in California Act. California’s current constitution actually allows slavery and involuntary servitude when it is a punishment for a crime. Proposition 6 would prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude in any form.
In 2022, voters in Alabama, Tennessee, Oregon, and Vermont voted to remove slavery and involuntary servitude from their states’ constitutions. In November, Californian voters can weigh in on this historic ballot measure, taking a stand to remove language in our constitution that is a threat to human dignity and justice for all.
If you would like to phone bank for Prop 6, please sign up here.
Proposition 6 would prohibit the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation from disciplining any incarcerated person for declining a work assignment. Proposition 6 would still allow the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to award credits to an incarcerated person who voluntarily accepts a work assignment.
It would not guarantee minimum wage, but it may assist separate efforts to get prisoners fairer wages.
As it is now, incarcerated people do not have basic workers’ rights or protections, yet they face severe penalties for just declining to work. As of 2021, California’s prisons held about 64,7888 incarcerated workers who make less than $1 per hour.
Declining to accept or perform a work or training assignment can lead to reduced privileges, including limitations on visits, phone calls, canteen purchases, yard time, entertainment and recreation access. One of the most impactful punishments to an incarcerated person is delayed or denied parole.
Nationally, the United States government profits from allowing slavery by forcing incarcerated workers to generate more than $2 billion dollars each year in products and services. In California, government entities and private companies generate and save at least hundreds of millions of dollars each year from incarcerated people’s labor.
For example, incarcerated workers make up about 30% of California’s firefighters, but even after some were released from prison, they were barred or faced significant barriers to serve as firefighters. Unfortunately, when they leave prison, incarcerated workers face challenges securing similar jobs to those they held while incarcerated, which affects their ability to reenter society and stabilize their lives.
To qualify for the ballot and become Proposition 6, a piece of legislation had to pass successfully through the California Legislature. GLIDE co-sponsored the previous bill (ACA 3) in 2022 and the latest bill (ACA 8) starting in 2023, which ultimately passed with bipartisan support on June 27, 2024. Now, GLIDE proudly stands with our community as a vigorous supporter of Proposition 6.
At GLIDE, we support the purpose and intention of Proposition 6, which allows our clients and community members who are incarcerated to have a choice in their work assignment.
Proposition 6 would give incarcerated people more flexibility to engage in rehabilitative programs like education, emotional intelligence courses, mental health and substance use treatment, which can reduce recidivism; they would no longer be punished for choosing those activities over a work assignment.
Join us in supporting Proposition 6 through your vote and your time; lend your voice to our community members who are incarcerated in their fight for human dignity, morality, and justice.
If you would like to phone bank for Prop 6, please sign up here.