Dr. Byron Price is a black scholar with a mission. His book, 'Merchandizing Prisoners' opens the door for a discussion on how the African American community is being financially pillaged by the prison industry. You may not know this, but private corporations earn money from inmate incarceration and have a direct financial incentive to house more. This is a problem, since unfocused profit maximization does not leave much room for prisoner rehabilitation. Dr. Price is one of the leading scholars in America, and he has taken it upon himself to help solve this problem.
1) What is your name and what do you do for a living?
Byron E. Price, associate professor, political science department, and interim director, Barbara Jordan Institute for Policy Research
2) Tell us about your book? What does it teach us?
According to National Union of Public and General Employees, "This book examines the steady growth of private, for-profit prison firms and the correctional-commercial complex that has developed tangentially with the private prison industry." It also details the strange bedfellows that have been brought together to expand this industry.
Slave History Unearthed
Actress Diane Johnson portrays "Sarah," a fictional slave during speaks to a tour group in character at Christ Church's cemetery in Philadelphia. Philadelphia's most famous Colonial-era church is opening the eyes of visitors with the revelation: Slaves worshiped alongside parishioners like Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross.
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The remains of buildings, including the house George Washington lived in while he was president, are shown at the sight of an archaeological dig in front of the Liberty Bell Center, top right, in Philadelphia, in this June 5, 2007, file photo. Historic Philadelphia's ties to slavery emerged in a big way in 2007 as an estimated 250,000 people witnessed the excavation of a slave passageway in the President's House, where Washington lived while Philadelphia was the nation's capital.
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Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama D-Ill., speaks about race during a news conference just blocks from Independence Hall and the Christ Church burial ground in Philadelphia, Tuesday, March 18, 2008. the city's most famous Colonial-era church is opening the eyes of visitors with a revelation: Slaves worshipped alongside parishioners like Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross.
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The city's ties to slavery emerged in 2007 as an estimated 250,000 people witnessed the excavation of a slave passageway in the President's House, where Washington lived while Philadelphia was the nation's capital.
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As "Sarah," Johnson plays a fictional slave who puts a human face on the grim statistics: In 1760, Philadelphia's population was 11,000; about 1,100 were black, and nearly 900 of them were slaves.
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Founded in 1695, Christ Church was the first parish of the Church of England in Pennsylvania and the birthplace of the U.S. Episcopal Church. Tours are given daily, but special presentations on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons offer slavery-related narratives.
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I underscore how these for-profit private prison companies have gone public and are trading on the stock exchanges and the inimical impact of prisons being publicly traded. The book debunks many of the claims as to why states seek prison privatization and demonstrates that incarceration is the new form of slavery. ...This work sets the record straight about the decision to privatize state prisons, revealing the political bias that often drives these policy choices.
3) Why do so many black men end up in prison?
The collateral consequences of a felony conviction makes it impossible for African American males to reintegrate into society. A felony conviction for drugs makes one ineligible for financial aid, living in public housing, receiving welfare benefits, obtaining a vocational licenses, such as a barber's license. Social-control strategies are employed to maintain the status quo. Over-policing of the African American community and the criminalization of black males all lead to the disproportionate incarceration of black males. Black males are more likely to be expelled from school, tracked, labeled, placed in special education, be punished for adolescent behavior and criminalized for adolescent behavior. Thus, there is an expectation that black males will end up in prisons, and these expectations are internalized by many black youth. It ends up as a self-fulfilling prophecy.
4) Is there money being made by incarcerating prison inmates? If so, how is it being made and who is earning it?
Corporations such as Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), the Geo Group (formerly Wakenhut), Avalon Correctional Services, Cornell Companies and Industry Property Management. CCA has a $2 billion market cap, followed by the Geo Group with a $922 million market cap. The money is made by contracting out the inmates' labor to Fortune 500 companies and, in some cases, they compete for public works contracts. CCA and the others are making money, and their stock trades on the stock exchange. Telecommunications industries pay prisons to put pay phones in prisons. Pay phones in prisons make $15,000 a day. Transportation companies and all sorts of cottage industries develop around the prison industry. UNICOR, or Federal Prison Industries, created by Congress, was one of the first prison industries established to exploit inmate labor. States also pay a per diem per inmate to private prison corporations.
5) Are the prisons being cooperative in reducing the abuse and sexual assault of prison inmates?
Prison rape is encouraged by guards as a form of punishment. They are not very cooperative when it comes to ameliorating prison rape. The increasing HIV infection rate of heterosexual black females can be directly traced to the prison population. It has also placed black women at a disadvantage, because it has reduced the number of marriageable black men and has undermined black women's ability to negotiate better mates. Many end up with men from prison and end up getting infected by these men.
6) Are there any efforts that have been successful at confronting the strange financial incentives of the prison system?
Not at the level they need to be. We should lead a divestiture campaign of private prisons, and we should campaign to abolish private prisons.
7) What do you think are the solutions to the problems cited in your book?
Our community should launch a campaign to get rid of the laws in place that continue to punish black males long after that have paid their debt to society. For example, the inability to get financial aid. We should ban the question on employment applications that ask, "Have you been convicted of a felony?" We should take control of our children's education -- we need to get our children around people who love them. Abolish gangster rap and reduce the influence of hip-hop because it fosters a thug culture and cultivates misogyny and thuggery. Black men should play a more active role in their children's lives. We should also create employment opportunities for our community.
This interview was conducted by Dr. Boyce Watkins, finance professor at Syracuse University. To have Dr. Boyce's commentary delivered directly to your e-mail, please click here.
Comments: (96)
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By: Misslady on 7/28/2009 11:53PM
Thank you Dr's Boyce and Price for exposing this horrible travesty in American business. Used to work for Dept. of Corrections and have been aware of these practices for many years. When I have told people that this goes on it seems to go way over their heads. For more info about this, research the PIC or Prison Industrial Complex. Inmates are used for everything from taking airline reservations, fast food orders, making furniture you name it. Also this, what should be illegal, method of using CHEAP labor is worse than outsourcing to other nations, ITS SLAVERY!!!!!
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By: realitybites on 8/06/2009 7:18PM
I really think it is patronizing and very simplistic of you to think that this can be compared to slavery. Slaves are born into their fate or forced there and have little or no choice. Convicted felons made choices that got them in their condition. The men and women who enter into our prisons are not there for vacation. They are not there because they are taking a break from the hectic hip hop life style. They are there because many of them have committed very serious crimes. Until you have had your brother, sister, mother, father, or child murdered because they were "in the wrong place at the wrong time" I think you would have a different perspective. These people have made some bad choices that have negatively impacted on the lives of many people in our society. Young people today do not respect their elders who are the people who have nutured them throughout our history. We have not answered the call of our legacy to make things better for our childrens generation than they were for us and our fathers. We make millions more dollars per year that our parents generation did but yet the rate of prison incarceration is nearly ten times that of our parents' generation. we as parents and as citizens must take part in raising our offspring you to know how to steer around the pit falls society has to offer. We must nurture strong children who become strong adults. The bottom line is when we can watch a young teenager walking around with his/her pants sagging somewhere between his/her waist and his/her knees and just shake our heads and walk on by then we are part of the epidemic. Children see the thug life and glamorize it not knowing what it takes away from their humanity. The man is not out to get us we have done very well in getting our selves. I remember there once was a book called "Everything I needed to know about life I learned in kindergarden" and it made a profound statement that the best learned principle for life are learned early in life and take us throughout the rest of our lives.
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By: Ife Ali on 8/11/2009 11:31AM
Email that was forwarded to me from: S. C. Armstrong
Correctional Lieutenant
Transportation Unit, Extradition Bureau
Division of Adult Institutions
916-324-8568 office
As a California Dept. of Corrections & Rehabilitation (CDCR) employee, I have had my fill with the statements being made in the media about how the overpaid state employees (prison guards) are draining the state's budget, and how the poor inmates (convicted FELONS) are dropping like flies due to substandard medical care and brutal living conditions. Allow me to cast some light onto these shadowy areas with my ten plus years of insight behind the walls.
California spends approximately $50,000 a year to house each of our 170,000 inmates. Roughly $12,500 of this is on their "substandard" medical care. In contrast, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs spends about $1,400 per veteran. You read that right. That's nine times more money being spent on convicted felons than on our nation's veterans. Texas, which ranks second in the nation in inmate population, spends about $5,100 a year, per inmate, on health care. In California, if an inmate has a health complaint, he fills out a form and may be subject to a $5 co-pay, unless it is deemed an emergency by health care staff. If that's the case, there is no co-pay and he is seen immediately. If an inmate claims a pain level over a 6 (on a scale from 1 to 10), he must be seen immediately by a registered nurse, and scheduled to see a doctor. I don't recall the last time I heard an inmate claim less than a 6. I don't know about you, but the last time I went to the ER it took me five hours to get in and cost me 50 BUCKS!
On the educational front, California ranks 29th in the nation on funding per student, and 49th in "student per teacher" ratio. Over the last two years, $11 BILLION has been cut from education. Add to that more than $5 BILLION in proposed cuts over the next two years. I have friends who have told me that their child's school had to cut the library program due to budget cuts. My own child's school had to cut the music program, although we still have a library. For now. And the few athletic programs we still have are run by volunteer-coaches, as there is no money to pay someone. The prison I work at has several paid coaches, in addition to a "recreational coordinator". There is a staff of who knows how many teachers, while my child's school had to lay-off two. But let us get back to these poor, fragile creatures we lovingly refer to as inmates.
The typical day in an inmate's life consists of being awoken at around 6:45am for chow. They walk to the dining hall, where they are served coffee and/or juice and a FREE balanced breakfast, that would cost my child $2 at school. They sit and eat breakfast, and socialize with their brethren, for about 15-20 minutes, and on the way out receive their free bag lunch. Then, if they have a job, off they go (the average workday for an inmate is about six hours). If they aren't employed, they go back to their housing unit until the yard opens at about 8:30 or so. Once out to yard, they have a myriad of recreational choices in which to indulge. Some inmates play basketball or run the track. Others prefer handball or tennis. Less adventurous fellows may choose to throw around a Frisbee or participate in a game of horseshoes. Some simply lay their blanket out o n the grass and sunbathe. There are softball tournaments to compete in for prizes (sodas, ice cream, etc.). This scenario is repeated three times a day for a total of about 8.5 hours of daily recreational opportunity, seven days a week. Wouldn't that be nice?
I have read numerous articles about the state prison guards making outrageous amounts of money in overtime. While it's true that I did make about ten thousand in overtime one year, what isn't known is that I didn't volunteer for a single overtime shift. Due to a hiring freeze and the usual attrition, ALL of my overtime was mandatory because of short staffing. In other words, much like the inmates, I was not allowed to go home after my shift those days. Unlike the inmates, I could not play horseshoes.
Up to this point, I have been "given" three furlough days for a total pay cut of around 15%. That was roughly equivalent to my mortgage payment. I am, however, no longer saddled with that burden as, due to said cuts, the bank has relieved me of that responsibility by taking back my house. The hardest part to swallow is the fact that while I'm losing everything I've worked for, the inmates have not had one program or privilege cut thus far. As a matter of fact, they gain new rights and privileges with every new lawsuit. Speaking of lawsuits, prisoner-initiated lawsuits have cost the state more than $ 191 million over the past six years. How many homeless veterans would that feed?
I hope I've opened some eyes as to what really goes on inside the walls of California's state prisons. Voters have made themselves heard with the three-strikes law and other get tough on crime issues. The people of this state demand justice when one person takes another's in cold blood. The problem is, once that person is convicted and locked away, he is portrayed as a victim of the system. Suddenly he is guaranteed rights that neither you nor I enjoy. Like the right to instant medical attention (despite what the media says); for free. The right to three balanced meals a day. The right to their own personal TV and radios. The right to buy Ramen soups or Snickers bars or Dreyer's ice cream. We, as the citizens of this state, need to pull our collective heads out of the sand and see what is going on in this state. We are taking money from our future, our children, to repair the damage these inmates have caused to themselves over a lifetime of drug-abuse and self-neglect. Instead of blaming Corrections staff and other state employees for the budget problems this state faces, let's take a hard look at what we're spending to care for and coddle the inmates in California. I'm not denying that basic medical care is a basic human right, but would you rather spend your $40,000 on a convicted child molester's total knee replacement, or pay a teacher a year's salary to educate 30 of our children?
So, in closing, let me just ask you this. If prison is such a barbaric, inhumane, insufferable place, why do 80% of them come back after their first term?
If you agree with this article, please pass it on to everyone in your contact list. If you don't agree, better see a doctor about that bleeding heart. If you commit a felony, you can see one for $5.
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By: WARREN on 7/29/2009 1:55AM
mordern day slavery,prison are nothing but frauds.sure theres plenty of people who deserve to be there but must will get out.there no education,no rehibilitation just organize labor.do people know that in some prison when you send money to relatives the prison system takes 10 up to 50% of their money,the phone calls cost 15$ per 15 minutes a call thats a dollar a minute.you even have private prison where corporation own prison,it's called privitize prison which the goverment fund money,I might write me a book about this sh!T to.
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By: Dr. Miles edwards on 7/30/2009 8:11AM
I had a personal experience with one of those excessive phone call from a prisoner.I told my cousin since you're going to be there for awhile,start writing me letters.We have been in communication now for over 10 years and his writing skills have improved as well.Now I pay for stamps and no more high phone bills.
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By: monique on 7/29/2009 8:57AM
Thank God someone is fighting this issue. We need African Americans to come together to fix this problem.
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By: hot coca on 7/30/2009 10:15AM
I agree,it takes time but everything comes out in the wash.
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By: beauty4ashes on 8/08/2009 5:54PM
Thank God for Dr. Boyce and others like him who are willing to bring these "prison pimps" out of the hole they are hiding in. We also need more Black teachers who really care about their Black students. Some of these Black teachers have turn their noses up at the Black students because they want to impress their non-Black colleagues who don't give a damn about them. Black parents come together, make sure your children are being taught. Make sure your child/children is doing what's right and being respectful. Challenge the schools if they aren't doing anything to help your child/children receives a high quality education. This modern day slavery have got to go. Help our Black brothers and sisters who are incarcerated by donating books to them. Show some Black-n-Black love. Stop the self-hated my people! EDUCATION OVER INCARCERATED!!
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By: Byron E. Price on 7/29/2009 5:37PM
I would encourage you all to sign the petition posted by William and to go to his website. He to is on the frontlines of this fight and would be a tremendous resource to any of you interested in this topic. I would like to thank Dr. Watkins for the opportunity to have shared this information.
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By: EbonyLeaf on 7/29/2009 5:46PM
Prison is simply slavery by another name! There is a book that goes by the very same title "Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II" by Douglas A. Blackmon.
Modern day prison are the same as chain gangs of old!
I have the book, but have no read it yet. The reason: anger!!! On positive note, I have been inspired and I commend Dr. Price. Will put down the complicated economics book I am currently reading and dig into something more relevant to me and my people!
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