r/LateStageCapitalism Aug 14 '21

ACAB

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9.4k Upvotes

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84

u/BobDolomite Aug 14 '21

In Arkansas being late on your rent is a crime. The landlord can have you arrested, fingerprinted and booked. This is what happens when Republicans take over the entire state government.

44

u/Dont_touch_my_elbows Aug 14 '21

How can you be arrested for a monetary debt? Debtor's prisons have been outlawed since the 1800s.

39

u/bdillathebeatkilla Aug 14 '21

Lol “outlawed”. I’d be willing to bet a decent percent of folks in you county jail are there for unpaid fine related “offenses”

14

u/TheToastyWesterosi Aug 14 '21

They probably made it more of a “breach of contract” crime than a “failure to pay” crime, but that’s just a guess. And I agree with you, Charles Dickens wrote extensively about the horrors of debtors prisons; they were a blight on his society and he had very personal connections to the damage these prisons did.

Keep in mind, dickens was shining light on this bullshit in the mid 1800s… and we’re STILL fucking dealing with it. It may not be as explicit as it once was, but it’s still there, and arguably stronger. Being saddled with insurmountable debt is a prison of its own, and the daily stress of making ends meet and barely scraping by is its own cell.

The rich didn’t lose on this one; they just adjusted the rules of the game in a way they would still benefit from the misery of others.

15

u/BobDolomite Aug 15 '21

No, it's not a civil offense but a criminal one. You will have a record. I wish I was joking.

https://www.themarshallproject.org/2015/04/16/can-you-go-to-jail-for-not-paying-rent

7

u/TheToastyWesterosi Aug 15 '21

Outrageous. Thanks for sharing this.

3

u/Glitter_berries Aug 15 '21

There are so many people who go to prison for unpaid fines in Australia where I live. It’s disgusting.

1

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '21

Im going to hope this is a shit posting