Punishment and Profits: Immigration Detention

The issue of immigration detention in the United States is a complex and controversial one, with political candidates and private prison companies vying for power and profit. In “Punishment and Profits: Immigration Detention,” Fault Lines takes us on a journey to Texas and Florida to uncover the truth behind the multi-million dollar private prison industry and its influence on US immigration laws.

Every day, more than 33,000 non-citizens are detained by the US government, at a cost of $5.5 million dollars per day. The majority of these detainees are held in facilities run by for-profit private prison companies, which have been accused of providing inadequate medical care, poor living conditions, and even abuse to the people in their custody.

As “Punishment and Profits: Immigration Detention” reveals, these companies have a strong financial incentive to maintain high levels of immigration detention, as they receive payment per detainee per day. And with nearly half of the country’s immigration detention centers now operated by these private prison companies, their influence on US immigration policies cannot be ignored.

But what is the true cost of this system? As Fault Lines investigates, we meet families torn apart by detention and deportation, and individuals whose basic human rights have been violated. The business of immigrant detention is not just about profits, it is about people’s lives.