While the U.S. violent crime rate has fallen drastically in the past thirty years, U.S. prisons and jails have had a 500% increase in population, thanks in large part to the efforts of private prison corporations. In the past decade alone, Geo Group and CCA spent over $45 million on political campaign contributions. By 2009, private prisons accounted for 8% of all prisoners housed in the United States. In 2011 alone, the two largest private prison corporations – The Geo Group and Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) – earned over $3 billion. Federal immigration policy has also been altered for the private prison companies’ benefit. On December 16, 2005, the Department of Homeland Security launched Operation Streamline, mandating that nearly all undocumented immigrants apprehended near the U.S. southern border be prosecuted through the federal criminal justice system. While the vast majority of immigration cases were previously handled within the civil immigration system, by 2009, 54% of all federal prosecutions nationwide were for immigration offenses, and Operation Streamline has funneled more than $1.2 billion into the largely for-profit detention system in Texas....there are more men in U.S. prison or jail or on probation or parole than were enslaved in 1850 wearechange.org/private-prisoners-new-slaves-usa/
Posted on: Fri, 22 Nov 2013 09:39:18 +0000
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