“Except for Me” Constitution Day

A day full of activities that educate and advocate for the Abolition Amendment. State and local legislators, activists, and formerly incarcerated artists will join a roundtable on End the Exception and speakers will speak to slavery’s continued legality under the Constitution. The public can participate in art making stations with End the Exception stencils and work on a collaborative mural. Featuring “Except for Me” an installation by the End the Exception Coalition led by Worth Rises with production from EP & Co.

“Except for Me” is part of the End the Exception campaign, and spotlights those at the center of modern, legal slavery under the 13th Amendment – incarcerated people. The initiative showcases 13 stories of formerly incarcerated people talking about their experience with constitutional slavery inside prison walls. It also features the “EXCEPT” wall – a public art installation that captures the experiences of those still legally enslaved in the United States. The exhibit brings their faces, voices, and stories out from behind the walls and puts it on the front of a very public wall. On a day when the Constitution is being celebrated in Philadelphia, we must also face the people whose continued enslavement remains legal, hidden, and morally indefensible.

End the Exception is Funded by Art for Justice and produced with partners Councilmember Kendra Brooks Office, Worth Rises, Justice Arts Coalition, The Walls Project , Latino Justice, The Art of Healing and Justice Network, California Lawyers for the Arts.