servilevocation
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Kentucky Lawmakers Proposing Return Of Slavery In New Bill
[FRANKFORT, KY] A State Senator in Kentucky revealed on Thursday a new bill which, if passed, would legalize slavery in the Southern State for the first time in 150 years, since the end of the American Civil War. And the Republican party in his state, including two African-American lawmakers, are now starting to rally behind the bill.
The bill, titled “The Kentucky Voluntary Servitude Act of 2015,” would allow Kentuckians to essentially sell themselves into slavery, with the funds they generate from the sale being transferred to family, friends, or whomever they’d like the money to go to. Once they’ve sold themselves, the State would recognize them as the physical property of the purchaser, who can command their new slave to carry out any legal task, from cooking and cleaning to manual labor.
State Senator John Mosby proposed the bill in closed-door meetings with the State’s Republican leadership in April of last year, and worked on the legislation with GOP leaders until it was announced on Thursday. State Republican chair John Hood says the bill has backing by the State party, including two prominent African-American legislators in Kentucky, who are co-sponsoring the bill.
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“We’ve been extremely careful about making sure this bill is responsible and sensitive toward race,” Hood says. “We wanted to make sure it serves its purpose, that being giving Kentucky’s poor a way out of their debts, a way to support their families, if they’re willing to work for it.”
To facilitate the sale and trade of slaves, Mosby says Kentucky would set up a monthly “slave auction,” to be held on the first Monday of every month. At these auctions, private citizens could offer themselves up as slaves, and slave owners could offer their own slaves for sale or trade. Any sales or trades that occur outside of the sanctioned buildings would be considered illegal transactions. Buyers and sellers must be recognized as legal residents of the State of Kentucky; interstate and international trades and sales would be prohibited.
Mosby says the bill has “extreme regulatory guidelines,” which he claims will keep the so-called “voluntary slaves” safe. “We want to make sure those Kentuckians who voluntarily opt into this system are fully aware of what they’re signing up for. They’ll need to meet rigorous mental and physical health guidelines in order to participate, and they’ll be subject to health examinations every six months. They can buy themselves out at any time, and will be issued caseworkers who will check up on them and make sure they’re content with their working and living conditions.”
Mosby went on to detail other regulations, including bans that would prohibit sexual exploitation, work in harmful environments, or work in extreme heat, cold, or other dangerous conditions. The slaves would also need to be provided by owners with suitable housing, clothing, and meals, as well as a cell phone and unbarred visitation rights with their families and friends at least three times per week.
When asked about federal anti-slavery laws and labor laws, Mosby and Hood both claim the bill satisfies those guidelines. “The thirteenth amendment prohibits slavery and involuntary servitude, but that’s not what we’re proposing here,” Mosby claims. “This is `voluntary’ servitude. These individuals will know the full details of what they’re getting themselves into. It has nothing to do with race, or owing your soul to the company store.”
But just how popular would the new law be? According to a recent poll conducted by private pollsters on behalf of the Kentucky Republican Party, as many as 22% of unemployed Kentuckians say they’d consider selling themselves into slavery to alleviate their debts, while 31% of Kentuckians earning $100k per year or more say they’d consider buying slaves if “well-regulated slavery” became legal in their state tomorrow. Hood claims several corporations have also come forward to offer their support of the legislation, though he refused to identify which corporations were backing the bill. “They don’t want to announce their support until we pass it, but they’re behind it,” Hood says. “And I think you’d be surprised to find out which ones.”
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Hats off to Kentucky Legislators - 
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