“Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum South
In the wake of the Civil War, southern states incarcerated record numbers of black men and women, closed their prisons, and sent convicted criminals to convict lease camps. Inside these camps, convict laborers worked for businesses, for individual entrepreneurs, on plantations, and on public works p...
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-12-01
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Series: | Religions |
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Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/12/651 |
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author | Brad Stoddard |
author_facet | Brad Stoddard |
author_sort | Brad Stoddard |
collection | DOAJ |
description | In the wake of the Civil War, southern states incarcerated record numbers of black men and women, closed their prisons, and sent convicted criminals to convict lease camps. Inside these camps, convict laborers worked for businesses, for individual entrepreneurs, on plantations, and on public works projects contracted to private businesses. Due to the Thirteenth Amendment’s “slaves of the state” clause, these laborers were legally classified as slaves and treated as such by labor camp operators. Conditions inside these camps were quite harsh, and in most camps, state-sanctioned Protestant socialization efforts were the laborers’ primary source of leisure. This essay provides a preliminary overview of the convergence of Protestant Christianity and convict lease camps as it calls scholars to explore this convergence in greater detail in future scholarship. |
first_indexed | 2024-03-10T14:20:24Z |
format | Article |
id | doaj.art-55b284d62ee64874a97842810c2ce762 |
institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
issn | 2077-1444 |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-03-10T14:20:24Z |
publishDate | 2020-12-01 |
publisher | MDPI AG |
record_format | Article |
series | Religions |
spelling | doaj.art-55b284d62ee64874a97842810c2ce7622023-11-20T23:27:55ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442020-12-01111265110.3390/rel11120651“Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum SouthBrad Stoddard0Religious Studies Department, McDaniel College, Westminster, MD 21157, USAIn the wake of the Civil War, southern states incarcerated record numbers of black men and women, closed their prisons, and sent convicted criminals to convict lease camps. Inside these camps, convict laborers worked for businesses, for individual entrepreneurs, on plantations, and on public works projects contracted to private businesses. Due to the Thirteenth Amendment’s “slaves of the state” clause, these laborers were legally classified as slaves and treated as such by labor camp operators. Conditions inside these camps were quite harsh, and in most camps, state-sanctioned Protestant socialization efforts were the laborers’ primary source of leisure. This essay provides a preliminary overview of the convergence of Protestant Christianity and convict lease camps as it calls scholars to explore this convergence in greater detail in future scholarship.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/12/651slaveryslave religionblack religionAfrican American religionthe Southconvict lease system |
spellingShingle | Brad Stoddard “Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum South Religions slavery slave religion black religion African American religion the South convict lease system |
title | “Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum South |
title_full | “Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum South |
title_fullStr | “Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum South |
title_full_unstemmed | “Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum South |
title_short | “Slaves of the State”: Christianity and Convict Labor in the Postbellum South |
title_sort | slaves of the state christianity and convict labor in the postbellum south |
topic | slavery slave religion black religion African American religion the South convict lease system |
url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/12/651 |
work_keys_str_mv | AT bradstoddard slavesofthestatechristianityandconvictlaborinthepostbellumsouth |