Politics & Government

CCA to Be Invited to Council Meeting

The Joliet City Council wants first-hand information about Corrections Corp. of America and the immigrant detention center it might want to build here.

The Joliet City Council voted Monday to ask the Corrections Corp. of America to make a presentation about the immigrant detention center that could be built in Joliet.

At-large Councilman Jim McFarland requested the meeting in order for council members to learn firsthand what could be proposed for Joliet and to decide if it's something the council would favor having built here. Corrections Corp. representatives could also answer questions from the public, many of whom have voiced opposition to the center concept in general and CCA specifically.

With the information in hand, the council could "vote on it, up or down," McFarland said.

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"There's been a lot of discussion with my fellow council members, who don't have enough information on CCA (and) what they're proposing," he said.

If the CCA were to make a presentation in June, the council could debate the merits of the project -- pro and con -- and decide if it wants to consider building such a detention center here, McFarland said. Ideally, the matter could be settled by July, he said.

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District 1 Councilman Larry Hug summarized the two points under debate this way: "Do we want detention center? And should we want to see a proposal, is CCA going to be the right company, depending on their history?"

The idea of a detention center came to light last fall, when City Manager Tom Thanas confirmed he'd discussed the possibility with CCA officials. Since then, no formal proposal has been proferred but opponents have held rallies and forums to urge the council to reject any plan that might be presented. They have come to every council meeting for the last several months to speak against it.

Arguments against such centers focus on the inhumanity of the conditions because of their for-profit nature and the fact that families get divided when one undocumented member is held and potentially deported. CCA, they say, has a particularly bad reputation, which they want the council to consider.


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