Private Prisons Report

During my sophomore year at Brandeis, I began working for The Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism as a research assistant. I collaborated with journalist Seth Wessler; he was investigating the massive incarceration of foreigners, most of them coming from South America. The prisoners, who are usually uneducated and/or from disadvantaged socio-economical backgrounds, were all open about being interviewed, believing that telling the truth would be the only path to justice. In their honest, simple language, which turned out to share commonalities, they have shed light to the truth about one of the most concealed corruptions happening behind private prisons. Some of the prisoners have been tricked or coerced through life threats into …show more content…
According to our investigation, if prisoners are captured in foreign maritime territory, they should be extradited to their original, natural-born country. But the US patrols distinct and extensive foreign maritime territory because they have the resources and skilled people to do so. It is as if they own the territory, thus, they do as they please. What the coast guards have done on many occasions is that they have decided to take their foreign prisoners to the US because it is often a profitable business to have occupied beds in jail, especially if it is in a private prison. I remember the testimonies of many of these prisoners, all claiming how their basic human rights having been violated as they were onboard of the ship that was carrying them to the US. They found themselves locked and chained in a limited-spaced room with extreme temperature conditions; they barely ate and if they did, it was not decently cooked food; they barely sleep; and they were uncommunicated from their loved ones. Such despicable conditions lasted until the ship finalized its voyage, and once in the US, many years behind bars awaited the prisoners