As 2024 winds down, surprise-released singles and albums have been a constant as artists put in final bids for year-end recognition. Yet Samora Pinderhughes has a much more noble motivation for releasing his new single: the composer and vocalist is sharing the collaborative track “Am I Human?” to raise awareness for the #EndTheException campaign, an initiative aiming to close up the loophole in the 13th Amendment permitting carceral slavery—a caveat unsuccessfully overturned during the recent California election. Produced with the help of The Healing Project and Worth Rises, the exciting single also sees vocal contributions from Jamila Woods, Bobby Gonz, Elliott Skinner, The Healing Project Choir, and poet Keith LaMar, who’s currently on death row.
“The majority of Americans do not know that the 13th Amendment—celebrated for ending slavery—includes a glaring exception that still allows slavery to be used as punishment for a crime,” shared Worth Rises’ Executive Director Bianca Tylek in a press release for the new track. “This exception is the basis for the exploitation of prison labor across the US, where people are forced to work in dangerous conditions for pennies an hour, if anything. It’s way overdue that we end this legal basis that has allowed the abhorrent institution of slavery to continue in our nation.”
Check out the single below, and learn more about #EndTheException here.
