The Minnesota Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee hosted a rally Thursday at the State Capitol to demand an end to forced labor in the state’s correctional institutions.
The rally, dubbed “End Slavery Day on the Hill,” gathered hundreds of participants in a call for change. The six-hour event aimed to raise awareness about the exploitation of incarcerated workers in Minnesota, with a focus on pressuring lawmakers to pass the 2025 Bill to End Slavery in Minnesota.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Clare Oumou Verbeten and Rep. Cedrick Frazier, seeks to reclassify prisoners as workers with the right to employment, thereby ending forced labor practices in correctional facilities. As of the rally, more than 370 people had responded to the event on Facebook, reflecting growing momentum behind the movement for fair labor conditions for incarcerated individuals.
The rally is part of a larger national and global conversation about prison labor. The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), alongside the American Civil Liberties Union and the University of Chicago’s Global Human Rights Clinic, has raised concerns about the United States’ ongoing violations of international labor standards.
Although more than 30 years ago the U.S. ratified International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 105, which prohibits forced labor, the country continues to engage in prison labor practices that conflict with the treaty’s principles.
A report from the ITUC to the ILO highlights the historical and racial roots of prison labor, drawing parallels to post-Civil War convict leasing programs. Under laws such as the Black Codes, Black men were disproportionately arrested and subjected to brutal labor conditions. The legacy of those systems persists today in the form of unpaid or underpaid prison labor, which disproportionately affects people of color.
These systems echo early 20th-century chain gangs, where incarcerated individuals — primarily Black men — were forced to work on public projects while shackled together. Today, prison labor still benefits state governments and private companies. In some cases, including during the Covid-19 pandemic, incarcerated people were compelled to work in dangerous conditions, such as staffing mobile morgues in Texas, for as little as $2 per hour.
The ITUC’s submission to the ILO calls for urgent reforms, including the elimination of coerced prison labor, fair wages for incarcerated workers, and the extension of labor protections behind bars. The movement aims to align U.S. practices with international standards and dismantle the racial and economic inequities rooted in the prison labor system.
In Minnesota, the push for reform is gaining traction. MIWOC has played a leading role in advocating for legislative change. The rally on May 1 was an opportunity to raise awareness, with attendees urging lawmakers to take immediate action.
Sen. Verbeten and Rep. Frazier’s support is seen as critical to the bill’s success, and its passage would mark a major milestone for incarcerated workers and their allies.
At the rally, civil rights advocate Nekima Levy Armstrong delivered a passionate speech to the crowd. “It’s somebody’s birthday and you get those big red balloons. Those balloons often have been made inside of our prisons with multimillion-dollar contracts of people working for little to nothing — people who have children to support,” she said.
“These companies are getting rich on the people who have been disenfranchised, marginalized, treated as less than human. Somebody say, ‘That ain’t right!’”
The crowd responded, “That ain’t right!”
“You know these companies don’t care about us, so we need to start caring about us,” Armstrong continued.
Levy Armstrong also called attention to MINNCOR Industries, a state-run program within the Minnesota Department of Corrections. According to mn.gov, MINNCOR provides job training and employment for incarcerated individuals.
The University of Minnesota has purchased goods and services from MINNCOR, including furniture and laundry services. Students and activists have criticized the partnership, pointing to wages as low as 25 cents per hour for incarcerated workers, while MINNCOR executives earn more than $100,000 annually.
Although Black residents make up about 6% of Minnesota’s population, they represent nearly 37% of the state’s prison population.
“I’m proud to be a part of a community that is organized today,” Levy Armstrong said. “The U of M was using MINNCOR Industries for their labor services, and guess what? They showed up to meetings and told them enough was enough. You need to cancel this contract.”
She continued, “And because the University of Minnesota didn’t want that smoke, they canceled the contract. Because people are organizing — they mean business.” The crowd roared as congressional staff observed from above the Capitol rotunda.
“This didn’t happen by chance. This didn’t happen through osmosis,” Levy Armstrong said. “This happened intentionally — to keep certain people enslaved within the walls of the criminal justice system.”
The atmosphere was electric as community members expressed their frustration and resolve to hold corporations and the state accountable. Some participants, fueled by anger over systemic injustice, used explicit language to emphasize their outrage.
“I’ve seen the damage that has been done by the criminal justice system for generations,” said Tanya, a community elder holding a sign that read, “Abolish Slavery.” “Today, we’re saying enough is enough. We’re not going to sit by and let our brothers, sisters and our children be treated like commodities. This system was built on the backs of our people, and it’s time to tear it down.”
Minnesota’s legislative efforts are part of a broader national movement to end prison labor exploitation. With growing support from lawmakers, advocates and communities, organizers hope Minnesota will set a new standard for incarcerated workers’ rights across the United States.
