The 13th Amendment of The United States Constitution

The 13th amendment of the United States Constitution was ratified in the year 1865 by president Abraham Lincoln makes it unconstitutional for a person to be held as a slave. There is one exception to this, a loophole that nullifies prisoners to this amendment. With now over 2.2 million incarcerated and forced to work with none to minimal pay slavery is rampaging like a untamed wildfire burning brighter than ever.

The documentary “The 13th” does exceptional work using pathos to emotionally invest the viewers. “The 13th” uses images and videos of multiple incidents of police brutalizing African-Americans and showing a abuse of power by the police force, an example of this is when during the documentary they show the video of the extremely controversial killing of asthmatic African-American man Eric Garner by police as they put him into a choke hold and held him in the prone position compressing his chest even after he repeatedly pleaded with the officers stating that he could not breathe. The images and videography featured in the video are used perfectly to manipulate the viewers emotions. The documentary also uses logos. “The 13th” uses cold facts and hard evidence to appeal to the viewers sense of justice and moral compass to make the viewer feel like they have to do something to make a difference.

While this mass incarceration epidemic has and will continue to affect this nation and everyone in it, it is a proven fact that African-American and Latino-Americans are more at risk than caucasian peoples. The “Black Lives Matter” movement is a very important point in the documentary. “The 13th” emphasises the fact that saying black lives matter is not exclusively stating that only black lives matter, but rather that minority peoples will no longer stand for the officers discriminating against colored peoples while they are distributing “justice”. The “Black Lives Matter” movement is used for universal justice for all races. The movement is a force for the brave to combat the evils of prejudice, discrimination, and racism in the world. People who chant all lives matter are protesting our protest, they are protesting change, they are protesting true justice.

Presidents Nixon and Reagan led a “war on crime” that led to the prisoners per capita in the United States to skyrocket into the top in the entire world. Are we not ashamed that China with a population of 1.379 billion people have less prisoners than us? The war on crime was more of a race war under the guise of justice and change. We as a people not individuals will never progress in the world if we are unable to love. We as a people will never have peace if we elect people like Donald Trump into office who spew nothing hate and prejudice. But more importantly we as in me and my peers, the future of this country are not taught acceptance, synergy, and Love we are destined to fail. This war may have started with hate but it can be ended with love.