Students Occupy University President’s Office To Protest Naming Stadium After Private Prison Company

[limpyhobbler]

Last week, the administration of Florida Atlantic University raised eyebrows when officials announced that they had sold the naming rights to the school’s new football stadium to the GEO Group, the nation’s second-largest private prison company.

And students aren’t taking the deal lying down. On Monday afternoon, dozens of activists staged a sit-in inside university President Mary Jo Saunders’ office demanding FAU revoke their agreement with GEO Group. After two hours, Saunders agreed to schedule a public meeting with the university community, according to the Palm Beach Post:

After some negotiations, Saunders emerged from her office for a brief meeting with the protesters, who have accused the GEO Group of human rights violations at its facilities, some of which are in Florida.

“I don’t know everything about this company,” Saunders conceded, but she also indicated that she thought some of the accusations against the firm were untrue.

...

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2013/02/26/1637921/students-occupy-university-presidents-office-to-protest-naming-stadium-after-private-prison-company/

[MotherPetrie]

1. K&R for those students

[msongs]

2. no democrat should support or endorse for-profit prisons nt

[appal_jack]

3. I agree 100%! n/t

[Initech]

4. [phone]

Anything that puts more money in the hands of evil forces is something that should not be allowed.

[busterbrown]

5. Thats what I’m freaking talking about!!!

Anyone know how we can help?

[dbackjon]

6. Private Prisons should be illegal

[Fire Walk With Me]

7. Bravo! Outstanding!

[dixiegrrrrl]

8. My faith is being restored by this.

Hot damn.

and rec.

[NBachers]

9. Maybe the prisons should start auctioning off their naming rights

[drm604]

10. In case anyone needs to be convinced of the evils of privately owned prisons:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kids_for_cash_scandal

The "Kids for cash" scandal unfolded in 2008 over judicial kickbacks at the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Two judges, President Judge Mark Ciavarella and Senior Judge Michael Conahan, were accused of accepting money from Robert Mericle, builder of two private, for-profit juvenile facilities, in return for contracting with the facilities and imposing harsh sentences on juveniles brought before their courts to increase the number of inmates in the detention centers.

For example, Ciavarella sentenced children to extended stays in juvenile detention for offenses as minimal as mocking a principal on Myspace, trespassing in a vacant building, and shoplifting DVDs from Wal-mart.

[Fire Walk With Me]

11. This should be an OP in GD :(

[drm604]

12. It's an old story.

It probably had more than one thread at the time.

[Scuba]

13. Thank you protesters!!!

[Fire Walk With Me]

14. The students have won a town hall meeting over the issue.

OccupyCommunity ‏@OccupyShannon

Inside the FAU Protest: Students Occupy President's Office, Win Town Hall Meeting Over GEO Group Stadium Naming Deal http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/pulp/2013/02/protestors_occupy_fau_geo_stadium.php …
Retweeted by occupybrlive


This wasn't clear in the OP link, so it's likely a new development.