End the Exception

The 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude except for persons “duly convicted” of a crime. As a result, those incarcerated in many states across the country are still subject to involuntary servitude. As mass incarceration disproportionately criminalizes Black people, slavery still persists in the United States and targets the descendants of its original victims. There is a growing movement of people and organizations dedicated to ending this exception. This project intersects with a powerful window of opportunity to engage people in learning about the 13th Amendment and adding their voices to calls for change. This three-part project, produced by Mural Arts Philadelphia and led by artist Phoebe Bachman in collaboration with Akeil Robertson-Jowers, aimed to elevate awareness of the Abolition Amendment on addressing mass incarceration. 
OPEN CALL 
During the first part of the project, currently incarcerated artists were commissioned to contribute original artwork about the labor they’ve performed during incarceration. In the second phase, Phoebe Bachman and Akeil Robertson hosted a series of teach-ins about the 13th Amendment in DC, Florida, Louisiana, and California, and Pennsylvania. During these teach-ins they collected additional input from those who are impacted by state violence, weaving in their narratives of how the exception in the 13th amendment has impacted not only those inside but their families and entire communities.
TEACH-IN'S
In the second phase, Akeil Robertson and Phoebe Bachman hosted a series of teach-ins about the 13th Amendment in Florida, Louisiana, and California, and Pennsylvania. During these teach-ins they collected additional input from those who are impacted by state violence, weaving in their narratives of how the exception in the 13th amendment has impacted not only those inside but their families and entire communities. Participants walked away with hand-created t-shirts and bags advocating for change.
Mural painted with youth Grace Cathedral and Akeil Robertson-Jowers and designed by Phoebe Bachman
Mural painted with youth Grace Cathedral and Akeil Robertson-Jowers and designed by Phoebe Bachman
EXHIBITION
The project culminated with an impactful public art installation at the People’s Plaza at Independence Historic National Park. Within the exhibition, the effect of the exception clause was narrated through drawings, paintings, and collages by currently incarcerated artists. Alongside these individual perspectives was a diagrammatic mural outlining the larger system of prison labor. Visitors could listen to audio recordings played through prison phone booths; the recordings stitched together a narrative of economic punishment that affects not just the incarcerated individuals, but their families and communities as well. Several public programs that elaborated on the core themes were scheduled throughout the duration of the exhibition, including a film screening of Angola Do You Hear Us? Voices from a Plantation Prison (Dir: Cinque Northern, 2022).
Partners 
Sponsor 
Art and Advocacy Grant from Art for Justice