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Summary Of 13th By Ave Duvernay

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In the documentary “13th” directed by Ava Duvernay, focuses mainly on a recurring issue in society since the mid-1800’s. The documentary takes both sides and depicts the concerns and problems that many inmates face day to day. “13th” asks the question if African-Americans were actually ever truly “free” in this country. African Americans are considered free under their born rights but what “free” meant to myself through this film is, will they ever be treated equally compared to the rest of society. The opening minutes of the film started with a statistic that read, “One out of four African-American males will serve prison time at one point or another in their lives”. Duvernay not only interviews various liberal scholars and activists that are for the cause, she also gives other opportunities …show more content…

A major issue in this film comes from the title, “13th” pertaining to the 13th amendment which abolished slavery, by doing this they took away a large source of income from the South. This has led to today finding a way to use people who are convicted felons as a source of Labor.
America holding only 5% of the world's population oddly has 25% the highest incarceration rate in the world today. Though the 13th amendment which abolished slavery in 1865 was a turn for history in the right direction until, a loophole has allowed it to continue as a punishment for various crimes, 86% of these crimes have been victimless non violent crimes. In reality slavery to an extent is still at large in society today, for example, at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, “There are more than 6,000 men currently imprisoned at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola—three-quarters of them are there for life, and nearly 80 percent are African American” (The Atlantic). Many of these men have been put to unpaid labor which is virtually modern day slavery because of minimal crimes. 4,800

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