Yes, some forms of slavery are still technically legal in most U.S. states

Slavery may sound like an issue of the past, but the topic was on the ballot in two states — California and Nevada — during the 2024 general election.

As election results were coming in on Nov. 6, viral posts on X suggested that millions of people voted to keep slavery, or forced prison labor, as punishment for crime, legal in California. The race was too early to call as of Wednesday afternoon, but current vote tallies show the amendment losing.

Some people who commented on the posts claim slavery technically remains legal in the vast majority of states.

Are some forms of slavery still legal in most U.S. states?

Yes, some forms of slavery are still technically legal in most U.S. states.

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Some forms of slavery, including forced labor as punishment for crime, are still technically legal in most states.

In the United States, the form of slavery most Americans are familiar with is called chattel slavery, which allowed people, who were considered legal property, to be bought, sold and owned. Chattel slavery was abolished in 1865 when the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution was ratified. But the text of the 13th Amendment contains an exception clause that reads:

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

“The 13th Amendment is the amendment that is celebrated for having abolished slavery. However, what most people don’t know is that within the 13th Amendment, there is a short exception clause that says ‘except as criminal punishment,’ essentially,” said Bianca Tylek, founder and executive director of Worth Rises, a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to reforming the prison industry.

This exception means if a person has been convicted of a crime in the U.S., they can still legally be enslaved when incarcerated, Tylek told VERIFY in 2022.

Worth Rises is currently backing legislation to remove the exception clause from the 13th Amendment at the federal level. An amendment to the Constitution requires approval by two-thirds of each chamber of Congress, as well as ratification by 38 states.

Making that change is a tall order, so some prison reform advocates have been working to change constitutions at the state level, many of which include similar language to the 13th Amendment.

“Across the U.S., there are some states that explicitly allow slavery, according to the same exception clause in the 13th Amendment,” said Tylek. “Others are silent on the issue, which means that the 13th Amendment basically reigns for all of its citizens.”

This past Election Day, Nevada approved a ballot measure that will change its state constitution to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude as punishment for crime. A similar measure was on the ballot in California. Votes are still being counted as of Wednesday afternoon, but the measure looks like it will fail. 

In 2018, Colorado became the first state since 1865 to approve the removal of slavery exception language from its state constitution, followed by Nebraska and Utah in 2020, and Tennessee, Alabama, Oregon, and Vermont in 2022. Now, a total of nine states have explicitly abolished slavery in all circumstances, including Rhode Island, which is the only state that fully abolished slavery prior to 1865.

As for what this means for prisoners in the U.S. — likely not much, at least at first. The approved ballot measures will not force immediate changes in their states’ prisons, but they may invite legal challenges over the practice of coercing prisoners to work under threat of sanctions or loss of privileges if they refuse the work.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.