Convict Leasing

Lawsuit challenges Alabama inmate labor system as ‘modern day slavery’

The class action lawsuit also accuses the state of maintaining a discriminatory parole system with a low release rate that ensures a supply of laborers while also generating money for the state.

U.S. Steel used convict labor in Birmingham. Has it reckoned with its past?

A century ago, U.S. Steel was one of the companies involved in Alabama's convict lease system. The steelmaker has a mixed record on acknowledging that history.