Pubdate: Sat, 11 Aug 2001
Source: Lexington Herald-Leader (KY)
Copyright: 2001 Lexington Herald-Leader
Contact:  http://www.kentuckyconnect.com/heraldleader/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/240
Author: Bill Harper
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration)

PRISON GROWTH SHAMEFUL

I take issue with the July 23 Herald-Leader's front-page article that 
gleefully stated two new prisons will ``invigorate'' Kentucky's 
economy. The human encagement industry is big business in the land of 
the free. This country is the world's largest per-capita imprisoner 
of its own people, and although the United States represents a 
fraction of the world's population, we house one-fourth of the 
world's prisoners.

More than 60 percent of federal prisoners are non-violent drug 
offenders, and most have black or brown skin. The article quoted a 
judge as saying, ``The community doesn't have to put anything in, but 
we're getting all this benefit.'' He seems to overlook the obvious 
fact that his community will be putting in the prisoners. For every 
new job that someone in the community gets, there will be two from 
the community housed as inmates.

The expense for the prison was listed as $32 million to house a 
measly 1,000 prisoners, most of whom will be in for petty drug 
offenses.

It is truly sickening to see human enslavement become part of the 
Fortune 500. Private prison firms are selling prison labor to 
organizations for profit, while paying the prisoner a token fee for 
``voluntary'' work.

Freedom from imprisonment should not be taken lightly. As these new 
prison labor camps open for business, they will have to round up 
customers. When you build a prison, you have to drag someone from 
their home and shackle them to get their business.

Bill Harper

Lexington
- ---
MAP posted-by: