US keeps immigrants in prisons aimed at profit and accumulate complaints

Javier fled Venezuela amid economic collapse, repression and the pandemic. As he crossed the border from Mexico to the United States in 2021, he was detained by US authorities, who threatened to expel him back to his home country, where he claims to be at risk.

Of all this, it is prison that he speaks with the most emotion during an interview with Sheet🇧🇷 He cries when he mentions that he felt his detention was being extended because it was profitable. The 28-year-old immigrant, who does not give his last name to avoid legal repercussions, spent six months in a private, for-profit prison.

Javier is the rule, not the exception. Of the 30,000 immigrants detained in the US, nearly 80% are in private prisons — that is, owned or operated by companies. These institutions are only supervised by ICE, the US government agency that handles immigration matters.

President Joe Biden promised during his campaign that he would end this practice, condemned by activists and human rights organizations. Did not fulfill. The number of detained immigrants has grown during his tenure.

Javier says he was stopped at the border and taken to Mississippi. A month later, he was transferred to a prison in Louisiana. He says the cell held 46 people, two toilets and two showers. The water came out as hot as if he were boiling a chicken, and the milk for breakfast was expired, he says.

There is no way to confirm the Venezuelan’s information, but they fit the stories of other immigrants who went through this experience. The report contacted US authorities, who did not comment on the matter.

A recent US Senate report suggests that dozens of women were subjected to invasive gynecological examinations in a Georgia private detention facility. The text describes appalling sanitary conditions, including inadequate procedures for dealing with Covid-19. Javier says that, in his case, the police officers working in the private prison refused to be vaccinated.

“The issue of private prisons is an old one,” says Susan Long. She is co-director of Trac, a project at Syracuse University that tracks US immigration-related statistics. “Our system is dependent on private prisons, and there is immense debate and concern about the living conditions of inmates.”

This scenario is related to a larger problem in the US, which is the growth of its prison population – in part, as a result of the war on drugs waged in recent decades. There are more than 2 million people in prison. To deal with the amount, the State transfers its responsibilities to the private sector, contracting private prisons.

For specialists, one of the main problems is that the profit motives serve as an incentive for the administrators of these prisons to cut spending on security, health and food. Another sensitive point is the length of detention, which, in practice, generates profit.

Javier says that his requests for habeas corpus were denied on the grounds that there was a risk of fleeing. He interpreted the delay as a way for the system to profit more. He claims he still hasn’t gotten over the fear that he would never be released. He talks about cellmates — including Brazilians — who are still waiting to be released.

“It’s a vicious cycle,” explains Jorge Barón, executive director of the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, an institution that works to defend immigrants. Companies get into the holding business because there is a financial incentive to do so. To expand the business, they put pressure on the government. Lawmakers pass measures that result in even more arrests.

Javier says he understands that he committed an offense by entering the US without a visa, crossing the border irregularly. He knew he could be stopped. He did not, however, expect to be treated like a delinquent. According to his report, when he was transferred, he had to put handcuffs on his hands, feet and waist. Most immigrants detained by immigration authorities are serving sentences for minor offences. According to Trac, 69.1% of them have no criminal record.

“We believe that the government should not detain people for civil immigration violations,” says Barón. If so, the situation gets worse when they end up in private prisons. “By outsourcing detention, there is less oversight and more abuse. Private facilities are where detainees receive the worst treatment.”