Private prisons

"I'm working on it, man. Give me another five days," President Joe Biden said Thursday in response to hecklers that demanded he "end detentions now" and "abolish ICE."

Over 20 other states have enacted similar bans. Washington's bill alleges that for-profit prisons have a "consistently and repeatedly documented" history of abusive, dangerous and unsanitary conditions for inmates.

Politics, lawsuits and company structure have combined to pummel the stock of publicly traded, for-profit prison companies. The downdraft creates uncertainty, the bane of investors – and the presidential election is unlikely to alter the sector's ongoing challenges.

Using human beings as commodities to make money is akin to pre-Civil War slavery. But we can abolish for-profit prisons. We can stop companies from using underpaid prison labor. And we can enact bail reform.

Joe Biden has vowed to end profiteering from incarceration in the U.S. if elected president in 2020.

If you're a young American in prison, underwear will cost you $3.25 a pair and a bra, $13.50. A 25-minute video visit from your family costs $7.50. In some places, even reading an ebook will cost you—five cents per minute.

An open letter signed by over 200 artists, academics and curators denounces MoMA's connection to mass incarcerations and Larry Fink, museum board member and CEO of BlackRock.

It's true most politicians don't change positions in direct exchange for funding. But enormous campaign donation from private prison companies don't help.

JP Morgan and Wells Fargo divested from private prisons after a massive public pressure campaign. GEO Group is worried about what may come next.

An investigation by The Daily Beast found 19 private prisons were being paid to house around 18,000 migrants, or about 41 percent of the 44,000 total migrants being held by ICE.

It was "hard to tell" if Jared Kushner and the White House are sincere in their criminal justice efforts, said a member of Law Enforcement Leaders.

The administration is ordering government-run facilities to transfer inmates to private prisons and said staff cuts are imminent.

The GEO Group is currently the subject of a class-action lawsuit from 60,000 undocumented migrants.

The Justice Department called privately-operated prisons less safe and less effective than government-run facilities.

Aramark says the promise is an extension of its core mission, to "enrich and nourish lives."

Corrections Corporation of America has been sued by the ACLU and inmates for its mistreatment of detainees.