Op-Ed: President Biden’s Executive Order on Private Prisons Could Ultimately Harm Reentry Progress

An op-ed published in Inside Sources from journalist Randall Bloomquist highlights how President Biden’s executive order on the elimination of private prisons fails to establish a solid plan in improving correctional programming across the U.S. While President Biden’s intentions to implement social justice reform are well-intended, his plan could actually make matters worse for inmates.

Mr. Bloomquist highlights one former offender spoke out in support of privately-run correctional programs: “Kevin Holloway, who did time for drug offenses in a GEO-run prison in Milledgeville, GA, says if you asked the prisoners, you’d find support for privately-operated prisons. He credits their post-incarceration programs, including counseling and help finding housing, with turning his life around. “When I was at Riverbend [Correctional Facility], they had a program for us to go through, called ‘Continuum of Care.’ I’m an alumni of that program. The state prisons, they don’t have anything,” Holloway said.”

Holloway commends the personalized care he received at GEO’s Riverbend facility and notes many others could miss out on the support he received. Critical programming like GEO’s Continuum of Care would be jeopardized under President Biden’s executive order. To learn more, read here.