Answer:
The 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution did not end slavery. In fact, it is the first time the word "slavery" was ever mentioned in the Constitution and it is in this amendment where it is not abolished once and for all as we were taught, but given the constitutional protection that has maintained the practice of American slavery in various forms to this very day.
The entire 13th Amendment, one of the most well-known of our entire Constitution, is just 47 words long. It could literally fit on a Post-it note. Yet, about a third of those words aren't about ending slavery, but are shockingly about how and when slavery could receive a wink and a nod to continue. Before the 13th Amendment was ratified, scores of publications and speeches the world over were published by abolitionists describing the horrors of slavery and why the institution must die.
Slavery never ended in this country. The 13th Amendment didn't end it, but simply forced it to change form and structure. It may look and feel different, but please understand the effects are very much the same. People in power still say those in the system deserve to be there — just like they did 150 years ago. Escaping the system, once and for all, for those who serve their time, is nearly impossible — with society doing everything it can to make a quick return to prison a painfully easy path.
