Leaders Urge Siplin to Back Off Prison Privatization

A handful of faith-based leaders and community members gathered on Monday outside Sen. Gary Siplin’s (D-FL) office on Pine Hills Road to urge that a study be undertaken on prison privatization. Despite being blocked by a Leon County circuit judge, who found the state’s prison privatization plan unconstitutional, Gov. Rick Scott and his Republican cronies are hell bent on moving ahead.

Jason Henry, a Democrat, running in District 39, who supported the community leaders said, the prison privatization is wrong and not right for communities.

“A large number of African-Americans are employed by the state and prison-privatization will get rid of at least 1,800 jobs,” he said. “It will disproportionately affect the African-American community where unemployment in some areas is over 20 percent.”

Unlike Siplin who supports the GOP effort to privatize prisons, Henry added that little or no money will be saved, citing a 2007 study undertaken by a Utah professor, who found no advantage to privatization.

Pastor Mike Davis who organized today’s prayer vigil said he hoped Siplin would re-think his support for prison-privatization.

“Privatization supports the prison industrial complex which will lead to a revolving door for Blacks, Latinos and anybody else in prison,” said Davis. “Prisons will be used for cheap labor and prisoners won’t have rights, won’t be able to vote ….once the system is set up.”

Davis elaborated, “Privatization of prisons is just a trap set up to keep people in jail and for the private sector to make money off of the people.”

Asked whether he thought it might be too late to stop the Republicans’ and Siplin’s effort to privatize state prisons, Davis said he believed with the people in Florida coming together, it could make the difference.

“We believe in the power of God to make a change and give Sen. Siplin a mindset to continue to serve the people of Florida and not laws that are contrary to us becoming productive citizens,” he said.

Florida has the third largest prison system in the U.S., with 144 facilities and just over 100,000 inmates.