INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
is big business in the border state of Texas, generating jobs for private prison operators, money lenders and storefront lawyers.Texas is at
the center of the immigration crisis produced by President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" practice, which has led to the separation of
more than 2,000 children from their families who attempted to enter the country illegally or while seeking asylum.Although Trump on
Wednesday ordered an end to the separations, deep confusion lingers over what this will mean on the ground
But in the meantime, the money keeps rolling in for those who benefit from the migrant influx.More than two-thirds of the nearly 304,000 who
entered from Mexico and were detained by border patrol agents in the fiscal year 2017 were in Texas, according to US Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE).Not surprisingly, then, Texas has the largest number of detention centers for immigrants.The Houston detention center,
built in 1983, was the first privately run prison in modern US history
Its owners, CoreCivic (formerly the Corrections Corporation of America), and the GEO Group are the two largest prison corporations in the
in our company by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement," GEO president George Zoley said last year in a statement announcing a new federal
economic incentive to promote mass incarceration even for minor crimes, such as illegal entry.The two corporations together "have spent more
than $10 million on political candidates and have spent nearly $25 million on lobbying efforts since 1989," according to an ITPI report.In
industry that drives the lobby for increased sentences, increases in mandatory minimum sentences, harsher punishment -- because every day
that they have somebody in a bed, you know, they're making money," immigration lawyer Jodi Goodwin, who works for the nonprofit Migrant
centers in fiscal year 2017 was 30,539
according to the Texas Tribune
Of them, the most controversial are those of the Southwest Key Programs.Its children's shelters are run under contract with the Office of
Refugee Resettlement (ORR), part of the US Department of Health and Human Services."Casa Padre," a former Walmart store in the town of
Brownsville housing some 1,400 migrants, is the largest of Southwest Key's facilities, some of which have been accused of violations by
state inspectors.Southwest Key will receive more than $458 million from the government this year, according to Bloomberg magazine.But
privately run prisons and shelters are not the only ones profiting from the business of illegal immigration.Immigrants pay more"This is an
of our court system, this is a full-employment act for lawyers, and you can bet that they will cash in on the opportunity -- and find ways
economies of parched and dusty Texas cities like McAllen, Hidalgo, El Paso, Laredo and Tornillo, along the inhospitable border with
judge in order to be released while their cases are being processed.In cases of common crimes, bail bondsmen charge defendants a commission
of about 10 percent the value of the bail
of illegal entry, plus an additional $500 processing fee.Bail for most immigrants is set at $10,000 to $15,000, "although I have one right
now for $25,000," an employee who asked not to be named told AFP.Once immigrants are finally released, they must wear electronic ankle
bracelets monitoring their location.Those bracelets are sold to the authorities by BI Incorporated, part of the GEO Group.Employees at its
El Paso office refused to tell AFP how much the firm charges for them.
