CMV: Slavery never ended and the predicament of African Americans in the US hardly improved

It's just a continuation of the narrative of(""better"") more insidious slavery. <br><br>Institutionalised racism wasn't discouraged amongst the ruling class and law enforcement, who created laws that enabled the oppression of African Americans. Poor African Americans were forced into dangerous and menial jobs which the white people didn't want to do (e.g. working in coal mines and construction of skyscrapers). <br><br>Bona-fide dissidents who fought the system, like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, were either killed or silenced by the white government. <br><br>Although slavery itself was abolished, it just created a loophole where the prison system could implement forced labor as a cost effective and legal alternative to slave labor.<br><br>Africans in America have been and continue to be disproportionally distributed into the prison system, not only because the laws are designed to catch African Americans in the system, but also their access to education and jobs is inevitably limited by their confined living conditions in the projects. <br><br>Most non-violent crime should not be punished by a prison sentence, but rather the perpetrator should be given a chance to accept a helpful punishment. For example, drug addicts are given hardly any opportunities to accept drug counseling. <br><br>When they leave, they are stopped from pursuing normal lives by being unable to vote and a plethora of stigmas that make it incredibly hard to secure employment or housing. <br><br>They are politically powerless, economically weak and are still subject to discrimination - the very reasons why they are placed in these living conditions in the first place. <br><br>The only truly important changes that came following the civil rights legislation were the lifting of oppressive laws like Jim Crow, and the ability for African Americans to vote. But politicians who have exploited the system have only worsened their "living" situations by disproportionate spending on the prison system. <br><br>They are far from politically empowered, despite having the right to vote, and have the capacity to influence legislative decisions at the higher echelons of power. As self-made African Americans in the US hardly ever run for office, and those that do are often ignored by the public and powerful whites. <br><br>- A strong prison system is(""better"") more expensive than a more extensive welfare system that can cater to the needs of the system. <br><br>- Prisons are disproportionately filled with African Americans, and self-made African Americans almost never hold positions of power. A prison-based system is nowhere near as effective as a welfare state that can provide operational rehabilitation of more people.