Letters From Our Readers

Garden District Patrol Contractor Questioned

Editor, You may have noticed an SUV patrolling the Garden District. This service is provided pursuant to a vote by Garden District Security District residents, of which I am one. Wackenhut Corrections Corporation, one of the world's largest for-profit prison corporations, received the current contract to run the patrol. The Garden District Association board either will soon award or has recently awarded a new contract. I am not sure whether Wackenhut is in the running for -- or has received -- the new contract. Nevertheless, I think readers should be aware of the truly revolting entity that is Wackenhut. Simply put, Wackenhut derives profits off the incarceration of human beings. As if this weren't disgusting enough, Wackenhut lobbies to ensure that the flow of raw materials it profits from -- i.e., prisoners -- continues to increase. According to a column in the October 23, 2002, Daily Texan, out of the University of Texas, "[P]rivate prison corporations are quickly learning a thing or two about lobbying. Corrections Corporation and Wackenhut both hold seats on the Criminal Justice Task Force of the American Legislative Exchange Council. The council, a far-right lobbying organization that drafts model legislation for state legislatures, fervently advocates tough-on-crime legislation that is sure to increase the number of prisoners behind bars. This is all done in conjunction with direct lobbying efforts carried out by Corrections Corporation, Wackenhut and Cornell." What does the Garden District Security District patrol have to do with private prisons? Our tax dollars are going to fund the efforts of Wackenhut to recommend the inflation of our already obscenely swollen prison ranks. There are now more than two million Americans behind bars. On a percentage basis, the United States imprisons more of its citizens than any other western industrialized country. Wackenhut has no place in any community that values the freedom of its residents. For more information on the Garden District patrol, contact the Garden District Association at 525-7608 or 826 Perdido St., NOLA 70112. Thank you. -David Koen