The United States has the largest prison population in the world. The number of people incarcerated has nearly quintupled since 1980. Our very own state of Georgia has 43,243 people behind bars. With an average cost of $31,286 to keep an individual in prison for a year the question must be asked; how do we house this rapidly expanding prison population? Georgia, like other states, has attempted to solve this problem with private prison corporations. These corporations contract with state governments to run correctional facilities. While Georgia has used private prisons to help solve the expenses of a ballooning number of inmates, private prisons aren't a panacea. In fact, they have led to many unintended consequences—consequences that could undermine the integrity of the entire Justice System.

How did we find ourselves in this dilemma? The problem stems from a series of stricter criminal legislation passed in the last few decades. Katherine McClain, a professor of economics at the University of Georgia, stated when interviewed, “The US has the world's largest incarceration rate…largely as a result of the war on drugs and mandatory sentencing laws.” These measures—supported by the private prisons—have polluted our correctional facilities with non-violent inmates. In the early 1980's, a political movement towards privatization swept into every facet of public life. With states burdened by the influx of inmates, private prisons were contracted.

The two private prison corporations contracted in Georgia are the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) and the GEO Corporation. Together they operate four facilities in the state housing roughly 7,500 inmates. All in the hope of lower costs.

The promises of a cheaper system have fallen short. Private prisons are more concerned with their profits than running effectively. It comes as no surprise that independent reports have found that it costs more or nearly the same to house inmates privately. After a University of Utah team reviewed years of research it was concluded that “cost savings from privatizing prisons are not guaranteed and appear minimal.”

Georgia’s imprisoned illegal immigrant population have become the guinea pigs for this private experiment. The CCA runs the countries largest detention center for illegal immigrants in Lumpkin, Georgia. Journalist Amanda Beadle reported, "Prisoners held in this remote facility depend on the prison’s phones to communicate…Exploiting inmates’ need, CCA charges detainees here $5 per minute to make phone calls. Yet the prison only pays inmates who work at the facility $1 a day." This tactic can interfere with an inmate’s ability to work on their appeals, and create a barrier between families who fled to this country for a better life.

The injustices don't stop there. The CCA, GEO Corporation and other for-profit prison companies have funneled vast amounts of money into political campaigns and lobbied legislatures to further their political agenda. What is this agenda? Push for stricter laws and mandatory sentences. This allows for-profit prisons to keep their cells—and wallets—full.

One political maneuver they’ve executed is halting immigration reform. The corporations know that immigration reform would cause major losses in revenue. The National Immigration Forum reports that it costs $159 to detain an illegal immigrant a day in private prisons. Immigration advocacy group, Detention Watch Network, argues that it could only cost $12 using reform backed "alternative detention program." CCA Spokesperson Steve Owen claimed, “As a matter of long-standing corporate policy, CCA does not lobby on issues that would determine the basis for an individual’s detention or incarceration,” but their large political donations tell a different story.

Private prison lobbyingefforts have been successful at reeling in as many freedom seeking immigrants as possible. The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that, "Even as Georgia and Alabama passed harsh new immigration laws last year...politicians from both states were lobbying hard to bring immigrant detainees in." Where did many of these immigrants end up? A private detention center in Ocilla, Georgia—along with taxpayer money.

The lobbying doesn’t stop there. Private prisons have pushed legislatures to increase sentences for non-violent offenders. New policies, like the three strikes rule, have caused a rapid increase in victims of the War on Drugs. Just to top it off the prisons have worked out contracts with state governments guaranteeing—as prison documentary filmmaker, Martin Skolnik, put it—prisons will be filled. This shocking agreement sets predetermined incarceration rates for American men and women.

For-profit prisons see every prisoner as a walking dollar sign. A view leading to the use of inmates for slave labor. While commonly being paid wages less than a dollar an hour, prisoners manufacture goods for a variety of industries. Major corporations like Starbucks, Boeing, and Microsoft are cashing in on the cheap labor. These actions are destroying job opportunities for low skilled workers. When low skilled workers lose their jobs they commonly find their way into crime. Creating an unintended vicious cycle.

Security is an area where some think a private prison would excel. Yet again, “for-profit” falls short. High job turnaround, low pay, and stress have led to poor quality guards. This opens prisons up to corruption and brutality. The problems are so extreme that one private prison Idaho seceded control of the itself to gangs. The prison gained the nickname "Gladiator School."

Private prisons are clearly not the solution to Georgia’s or the Nation’s problems. It’s immoral that an industry would work tirelessly to put more Americans behind bars for a profit. These corporations must be dismantled and a new approach taken. We can start with lighter sentences for non-violent criminals, comprehensive immigration reform, and ending the War on Drugs. It's not too late to stop this steamroller from crushing the American way.