Corizon is a healthcare company contracted by prisons. Failing to provide sick prisoners with needed care turns out to be pretty good for Corizon’s profits.
Global Tel*Link profits off love, charging prisoners as much as $17 for a 15-minute phone call. The company is making massive profits by charging extremely high rates for phone communication, financially taxing the families who rely on those services to keep in touch with loved ones.
Police officers are forcing people to choose between time behind bars or turning over their money and property – all without ever making an arrest.
If you’re arrested, you can pay a hefty sum or sit in a cell waiting for trial. Don’t have the funds? The for-profit bail industry can help – for a big fee. Bond companies charge massive fees and target the portion of the population who have the least amount of money.
Corrections Corporation of America is the country’s biggest for-profit prison company and calls human beings in lock-up a “revenue stream.” The CCA makes money by keeping their prisons full, leading to policy changes that “guarantee” prisons will be full.
The GEO Group is a for-profit prison company that pulls in billions by locking people up. The company is making massive profits by mistreating inmates, and is hiring lobbyists to influence policy-makers to perpetuate their profiteering.
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
If you have the means to make a substantial gift, please dig deep during this critical time!
With gratitude and resolve,
Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy