In this workshop, we will explore the role of private prisons in perpetuating mass incarceration as well as an emerging prison divestment campaigns taking off at colleges and in communities around the country. The Corrections Corporation of America and the GEO group are the two largest private prison companies in the country and are making billions by locking people up. These same companies are heavily involved in lobbying efforts with groups like ALEC that are calling for more laws that target immigrants and communities of color, like SB1070 and “stand your ground” laws.

Divestment campaigns are bringing to light the relationships between many institutional investors and the private prison industry, and are using divestment as a tool both to de-legitimize these companies and to help shift the dialogue around the punishment industry. In addition to providing an overview of these campaigns we'll create space to explore questions of community reinvestment, reparations, and other ways universities and other institutions can be moved to have a more positive relationship with the communities most targeted by the carceral state and its for-profit allies.

Collaborative live notes: https://commonbound.hackpad.com/Divesting-From-The-Prison-Industrial-Com...