n 2020, President Joseph “Joe” Biden pledged to end for-profit immigration detention, emphasizing the moral imperative that “no business should profit from the suffering of desperate people fleeing violence.” However, as the Biden administration embarked on this mission, it encountered numerous challenges.
As of July 2023, 90 percent of the 30,000 individuals in ICE detention were housed in privately operated facilities. Private corporations have seen their revenues from immigrant detention increase exponentially. As the ACLU has stated, it is evident that the federal government’s immigration detention system leans heavily on private prison corporations. Notable entities in this sector, including the GEO Group, CoreCivic, LaSalle Corrections, and the Management Training Corporation, have amassed billions from ICE detention contracts over the past two decades.
A recent internal review of detention centers brought into focus the intricate issues surrounding immigration detention and how it currently affects communities, detainees, and the interests of private prison companies.
The Promise of Change & Findings
During his campaign, Biden pledged to end the use of private prison companies for immigration detention. In 2021, he declared “no private prisons, period,” when responding to protesters advocating for an end to immigration detention. However, Biden’s statement noticeably omitted ICE detention from this pledge despite issuing an executive order in Jan. 2021 instructing the Department of Justice to gradually terminate its contracts with private prison companies. Consequently, the number of immigrants detained by ICE has continued to rise, leading to increased revenues for private prison companies.
In May 2021, shortly after Biden took office, senior immigration officials launched an internal review of detention centers, aiming to assess which facilities should be scaled back, reformed, or closed. During this period, private prison companies experienced a notable surge in revenue from ICE contracts, prompting concerns among advocates who questioned whether private facilities met the required standards of care for detainees, including concerns about poor medical care, unsanitary conditions, limited access to legal representation, sexual assault, and detainee deaths. The internal review highlighted advancements achieved within detention centers as well as persistent challenges. At the Moshannon Valley Processing Center, noticeable changes included the removal of razor wire from the fences and the absence of deadly weapons among staff. Detainees are now referred to as “residents,” and guards are designated “resident advisers.” However, accounts from inmates reveal instances of unjust solitary confinement and mistreatment by guards, underscoring the ongoing issues within these facilities.
As Biden gears up for potential re-election in 2024, immigration continues to be a controversial topic. While the Biden administration has not yet addressed concerns regarding the closing or improving some of the most heavily criticized detention centers, a White House spokesperson reiterated the administration’s dedication to reducing the use of private detention facilities.
Ongoing immigration detention reform is a journey fraught with challenges, including competing economic interests, political pressures, and the need to work toward the humane treatment of detainees. The Biden administration has made some strides, but the debate surrounding immigration detention remains complex and divisive.
