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| Is detention center issue best settled at Statehouse, … |
IT
IS A facility that officials have proposed building in so many different
communities throughout Illinois AND Indiana, only to run into constant
opposition from local officials who don’t want any such thing being built
within their communities.
Because
no matter how much ideologues try to disguise such facilities as a humane place
to hold people facing charges of immigration violations, the simple fact is
that they are jail-like in nature.
There’s
just no disguising it. We’re looking to lock up people, even though most of
them haven’t done anything criminal in nature. And no, not even their
immigration violation – which is more a civil offense rather than something for
which they could face incarceration in a real prison facility surrounded by
other criminals.
Anyway,
it seems Dwight was a facility far enough from Chicago that the locals weren’t
inclined to share the hostile feelings that many locals have about having a
prison-like facility built within their boundaries.
IF
ANYTHING, IT seems that Dwight was willing because the community has a history
of containing prison facilities. Dwight was once the site of the prison for
women within the Illinois Department of Corrections.
I’m
sure some locals remember the idea of prisons as being a source of local jobs.
Even though I always wondered about people who work in corrections facilities –
it is, after all, work in prison. One literally has to go to jail every day.
Possibly amongst the most depressing employment environment one could find. |
| … or something best left to the locals? |
It
would demonize at a statewide level the very concept that the ideologues want
to view as economic development. All because they don’t want to see more prison
like facilities being built anywhere in Illinois.
IT
DEFINITELY PUTS Illinois further in the camp of those people who don’t want to
see ideologues and their hostile views prevail.
Particularly
since the thing about these detention facilities that is key to comprehending
them is that the proponents of such places think that a key element is that
they be owned and operated by private companies.
Meaning
a lot of the usual regulations that govern prison operations just wouldn’t
apply. Not only do they appease the ideologues on immigration ideals (deport
all the foreigners!), they’re also anti-labor.
None
of those pesky rules that might require detention to be done with certain
ideals of humanity in mind. And that also up the overall cost of operating
detention facilities.
IN
SHORT, I’M sure the ideologues are now prepared to lambast the Illinois
Legislature as being even further out-of-touch with their conservative ideals
than they already do so.
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| CASSIDY: Pushing for statewide ban |
Then
again, these are the people who got all excited last week when a judge struck
down an attempt by suburban Deerfield to ban high-powered assault weapons from
being owned by anyone within their community.
Yet
another effort to try to impose their views upon all of Illinois – no matter
how out-of-line it is with the way the bulk of us view the issue.
Which
makes this an issue likely to provoke a brawl across the state in coming
months. Because although a majority of us in places like Joliet and Crete
headed east to Gary, Ind., have made it clear how much we detest the concept,
there are those who will continue to push it until we get a state law. And even
then will likely fight it further.
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