Re:How corporations buy and food made with prison labor
by nerdponx on Wednesday May 19, 2021 @12:27PM
(#27210835)
For what it's worth, In my understanding the prisons themselves aren't necessarily private. At the federal level, most are not, but everything is run by for-profit contracting firms.
Re:How corporations buy and food made with prison labor
by aerostable_slug on Wednesday May 19, 2021 @02:56PM
(#27212839)
Private prisons incarcerate 8% of the total US prison population. I strongly suspect if they were banned, little would change for the average inmate.
The rest of the inmates are in prisons that are state-owned and thus inherently nonprofit, and the guards & other staff are either state or federal workers. Contractors do things like provide commissary goods or run the inmate telephone system, but the guard in the tower at your local prison is a state employee.
Re:How corporations buy and food made with prison labor
by P_I_Staker on Thursday May 20, 2021 @09:20AM
(#27220748)
Hey, so IMO private prisons are a distraction and tiny part of the problem. The prison industrial complex is more substantial (but still just a piece). It's not just the prisons, but the contractors and LEO/justice personnel involved in putting bodies into the system and making sure as many lives are ruined as possible.
The financial incentives are set up to produce as many dangerous criminals as possible. Without repeat offenders, many private prisons would have to close.
The solution is simple: The US should actually ban slavery and should also ban private prisons.
It should replace private prisons with ones that are rewarded when their former prisoners become productive members of society.
There should also be a cap on the ratio of prison spending to education, mental health, and community service programs.