Convict Leasing In The Early 1900's
After the Civil War ended, the abolition of slavery created a controversy in the economic motivation of the South over work force and the penal system. However, during the 1800's a new found free labor force known as convict leasing became most popular. Convict leasing allowed wealthy families who bid the highest to lease the convict and use their labor in exchange for food and clothing. The lessee could force the convict do whatever he pleased. Even though the convicts were paying the price of their crime, they were treated very inadequately and did not deserve such harsh punishment in some circumstances. As long as the South accepted that convicts deserved to maintain this level of work just as slaves did, they would never be able to fully
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While also maintaining their agrarian status, they were able to do so through convict leasing. What convict leasing allowed the South to do was maintain free labor to citizens while not violating the new slavery laws and creating a new penal system that was cost efficient. Farmers were able to continue having a work force to uphold their land and keep production going. Slaves were freed, in which most either migrated north or became criminals because of their lack of knowledge about the free world. This eventually got them into many a predicament. The majority of slaves that did not become convicts ended up working for their previous owner. Sharecropping also became popular as a contrary to convict leasing. Ex-slaves would care for and live off of a certain amount of the land lord's crops. In return they would give the land lord a measurement of the crops as payment. This system still gave whites the superiority of the mainly black ex-slave population. Another goal of the South was to not let the new population of freed slaves to become of equal social status as the public. Land lords often created a system where the ex-slave would have to give them so much of the crops grown to pay for essential needs, for example clothing or books. The unfortunate situation was that the share croppers never made enough profit to sustain themselves and once again ended upon the street and/or in debt. This resulted in a higher possibility of them becoming
While also maintaining their agrarian status, they were able to do so through convict leasing. What convict leasing allowed the South to do was maintain free labor to citizens while not violating the new slavery laws and creating a new penal system that was cost efficient. Farmers were able to continue having a work force to uphold their land and keep production going. Slaves were freed, in which most either migrated north or became criminals because of their lack of knowledge about the free world. This eventually got them into many a predicament. The majority of slaves that did not become convicts ended up working for their previous owner. Sharecropping also became popular as a contrary to convict leasing. Ex-slaves would care for and live off of a certain amount of the land lord's crops. In return they would give the land lord a measurement of the crops as payment. This system still gave whites the superiority of the mainly black ex-slave population. Another goal of the South was to not let the new population of freed slaves to become of equal social status as the public. Land lords often created a system where the ex-slave would have to give them so much of the crops grown to pay for essential needs, for example clothing or books. The unfortunate situation was that the share croppers never made enough profit to sustain themselves and once again ended upon the street and/or in debt. This resulted in a higher possibility of them becoming