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... d hands with the staff at the Sudbury Jail and local citizens to fight the privatization of correctional services. OPSEU has a new policy that will support locals to finance public events in their communities that speak out against privatization of correctional services. OPSEU gained the support of two municipal councils. The two councils threw their support behind the anti-privatization motion that was passed by the town of Midland. OPSEU has also mailed lobby kits to all corrections locals.
Our goal is to have 100 councils support a motion opposing the privatization of correctional services, said Barry Scanlon, chair of the OPSEU Ministry Employee Relations Committee in the Corrections Ministry. (16) OPSEU has also been involved in protests against privatization. In February, members showed up for a demonstration at the Bell Cairn Training Center in Hamilton. They came to protest privatization and the continuing misuse of unclassified staff in Ontario jails. (17) Also in February, OPSEU went public with government plans to have lone private security guards to escort violent offenders in communities across Ontario. They have planned to use one private guard to perform the duties of two professional correctional officers. The Health and Safety Act had ordered the government to use two professional corrections officers for all community escorts. (17) OPSEU is also involved in getting correction officers in jails to gather petition signatures against privatization.
OPSEU also holds informational meetings on anti-privatization. In March, the Ontario government offered some corrections workers in OPSEU a bribe in an attempt to get them to shut up about privatization. The members refused the bribe. Also in March, Lindsay Town Council voted unanimously to oppose a private jail in their community, which was another win for OPSEU. OPSEU saw over two protests in March against privatization. The first took place in front of pro-privatization Mike Harris constituency office.
The second protest involved a truckload of steaming cow manure with signs in it saying Stop the B. S. Come Clean on Private Jails. (18) Both protests made the front pages of their respective newspapers. In March alone, OPSEU gained the support of 18 municipalities thanks to the Lambton County Council that passed the no private prison resolution.
This council just happens to speak for 18 municipalities. (19) March 2000 was a very successful month for OPSEU. In April, over 400 members of OPSEU and citizens showed up in the town of Penetanguishene to hear Corrections Minister Rob Sampson try to justify his privatization plans. Sampson was not successful in justifying his plans and was overwhelmed by the crowds questions. He lost his composure after the first two questions. (20) Also in April, three townships pass the resolution in support of public jails.
The past few months have been very successful for OPSEU. As they stepped up their campaign against private prisons, they have gained the support of quite a few municipalities and influential people and have expanded their resources. It will be interesting to see what they will accomplish in the next year in Ontario in their crusade against privatization. There arent very many citizen groups against private prisons, but I was able to get information on one of them.
Citizens Against Private Prisons or (CAP) is a purposive interest group that was formed in the spring of 1999 in Wellsville, Ohio when the towns mayor and council was approached by a Congressman to consider the construction of a 2500 bed private correctional facility. The facility was to be owned and operated by Correctional Corporation of America. The group formed in response to this and because of the CCA owned prison in Youngstown that has had many questionable escapes and deaths. This purposive group formed in response to an enemy.
So far, the group has mainly targeted the general public, the mass media, and other interest groups. They havent successfully targeted policy makers. CAP was able to get an initiative on a November ballot. Basically it says that the sewer services are prohibited to a private correctional facility that houses out-of-state prisoners. CAP has gained the support of AFSCME-CU, OCSEA, AFGE, and Senator Hagan helping them in their groups efforts. (20) CAP was able to get Eric Bates, private prison critic and widely acclaimed author to speak at a Wellsville open meeting.
They also held an informational meeting for the community with representatives from different unions in 1999. In October 1999 CAP canvassed neighborhoods along with members of different unions to join their group. In 1999, CAP also wrote many letters to the editors of local newspapers. Also, in October, CAP spoke to the School Board about prison privatization. With the help of OCSEA and AFGE, CAP passed out packets of information including a copy of their initiative to 1300 registered voters. In November, the CAP initiative did not pass.
It failed 657 to 622. In December, CAP tried to get the initiative back on the ballot, but they were unable to because a contact at the election board did not inform them on how to correctly file the initiative properly. In January 2000, CAP set a strategy meeting with OCSEA. They discussed sending more flyers out, making more signs, and contacting different people. Also in January, several members of CAP joined other anti-private prison groups in protest. In February, members of CAP met with an author for the magazine Mother Jones.
The author is Barry Whom, and the editor is Eric Bates. They are going to write an article about private prisons. The author interviewed the Youngstown Prison Forum, took a tour of the CCA-run facility in Youngstown and interviewed a prisoner. The article will be published in May. (20) The author also attended one of CAP council meetings and interviewed the mayor. Also in February, CAP members met with Lyle Williams who is running for Congress on the Republican ticket. He has made his views on private prisons known.
CAP is supporting his campaign. In April, CAP got a local newspaper to write an article on Correctional Corporation of Americas $ 206 million loss. (21) Although Citizens against Private Prisons is a very new interest group, their voice is already being heard in Ohio. They have made attempts at Astroturf lobbying by contacting constituents by telephone and direct mail. They have experienced the two problems with lobbying already. They are having a hard time getting the attention of policy makers, and influencing the policy makers. They dont have many resources yet, but with the help of other interest groups, they may become stronger in the future.
It is interesting to study the politics of a newly formed interest group and to see the mistakes that they make. Some of these new groups learn from their mistakes, and others do not and disappear from the world of politics. In researching these four interest groups against private prisons, I have learned a lot about interest group politics. I have learned that when these groups work with other groups for a common cause they are more likely to become successful.
I have also learned that the Corrections interest groups and the Labor groups seem to have more resources and more connections with influential people. The Corrections interest groups are more likely to gain support of police chiefs, other correction officers and other law enforcement officials than a citizens group would. They are also more likely to get the attention of key constituents. Also, I have learned that the groups like OPSEU that try many different strategies have been more successful.
They utilized strategies such as lobbying government officials, protesting, petitioning, informing the press and the public, and lobbying municipalities to bar private prisons. They have been quite successful in their varying efforts. Citizens Against Private Prisons have been less effective. They have mostly aimed their efforts at informing the press and public. When they tried to get an initiative on a ballot, they were unable to because they were inexperienced in politics. This group is new and probably had no idea what they are in for.
More experienced groups like OCSEA and AFSCME-CU have been more successful at lobbying for legislation. This is most likely because they have been around for a long time and are more experience and more political connections. In conclusion, I have learned that no matter how strongly an interest group believes in a cause, success does not come from strong opinions and a little hard work. Success comes from many different resources. These resources include money, political connections, size, knowledge, experience, credibility, and expertise.
Interest groups need these resources in order to influence the policy making process. Bibliography: WORKS CITED AFSCME Legislative Agenda-Law Enforcement Issues. web AFSCME-CU ACU launches campaign Against For-Profit Prisons. Summer 1998. web AFSCME-CU Index. web AFSCME-CU Stop the CCA Private Prison Realty Scam.
web CAP Ongoing Updates. web OCSEA Assembly reps testify for private prison ban. web issue. html OCSEA A Brief History. web OCSEA Many Fronts to Prison Privatization debate. web speaking.
html OCSEA Prison Employee Union Calls for Broad Hearings, Full Ban on Private Prisons. 31 July 1998. web release 4. html OCSEA State Corrections Employees Group to Induct Senator Hagan Monday 24 Apr 1998. web release 0. html OPSEU-Lock Talk 30 Dec 1999 web OPSEU-Lock Talk 21 Jan 2000 web OPSEU-Lock Talk 18 Feb 2000 web OPSEU-Lock Talk 10 Mar 2000 web Smith, Phil.
Private Prisons: Profits of Crime. Covert Action Quarterly Fall 1993
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