Assata Shakur: Perpetuate Slavery
on Tuesday, January 16, 2024Meaning of Assata Shakur Money Quote: saying prisoners labor makes prisons a profitable business with the free labor pool. Assata Shakur said:
“Prisons are a profitable business. They are a way of legally perpetuating slavery” — Assata Shakur
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In this quote, Assata Shakur is strongly criticizing the prison system in the United States. Her interpretation is that private prisons have become a lucrative business that profits off of incarcerating large numbers of people.
She argues this system essentially amounts to a continuation of slavery, with prisoners being used for their labor and representing a source of cheap labor that enriches corporations.
Shakur seems to believe the profit motive has corrupted the intent of the justice system, skewing it towards mass incarceration that serves the interests of businesses profiting off prisons rather than justice or rehabilitation.
The overall message conveys Shakur’s view that the for-profit model of prisons has created a new form of institutionalized slavery in America.