Florida is once again turning to forced prison labor for essential public services. This time the state needs help clearing debris following the devastating impact of Hurricane Helene. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently boasted the use of what he called “low-security inmates” to manage cleanup operations. But how does the Sunshine State treat the people who are providing this critical service?

Trapped in debt as Florida saves money

As Florida recovers from Hurricane Helene, Governor DeSantis extolled the state’s use of prison labor as a cost-saving measure.

CL Tampa Bay reports,

DeSantis said the state is saving money by engaging prison inmates with cleanup work instead of private contractors. He said debris cleanup “is a very difficult thing.”

“But, this debris, we’re utilizing our resources,” DeSantis said. “We’ve got low-security inmates that are out there who do normal prison labor, the Department of Corrections is bringing them to help with hurricane cleanup. So now they’re out there cleaning up in the debris, which would cost us way more money if you had to do that through some of these private contractors.”

However, the Governor did not mention that the very people his state depends on for critical support endure conditions that strip them of their dignity and force them to work in situations akin to modern slavery.

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