Due to the grave violations of human rights documented at immigrant detention centers, including the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, WA, the Seattle Human Rights Commission passed Resolution No. 14-4 on July 1st, 2014 calling on the City of Seattle to divest from corporations that profit from immigrant detention. Efforts are also underway in other cities in the United States, including Portland, OR and El Paso, TX, in making a statement to advance human rights and public accountability in the use of public funds.
Currently, at least two of the city’s three fund accounts have assets that are being managed by investment firms that hold significant shares in the largest private immigrant detention operators in the nation, GEO Group and Corrections Corporation of America. Such investments are contradictory to the City’s reputation and record as a strong promoter of human rights, immigrant rights, and comprehensive immigration reform that keeps families together and upholds due process and humane treatment of immigrants.
Recent news reports and documentation by elected officials and community-based organizations have revealed human rights violations at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, WA, operated by GEO Group. These findings highlight the poor conditions under which immigrants, refugees and asylees are being held, their mistreatment and exploitation by detention center operators, and the lack of transparency and accountability for the actions of private immigrant detention operators.