Bank of America said it will cease doing business with companies that are involved with running private prisons and detention centers.
The bank has been “discussing the issue for some time,” with pertinent clients, a company spokesperson told Fox Business in a statement.
“We have decided to exit the relationships we have with companies providing prisoner and immigrant detention services for federal and state governments, as expeditiously as possible,” the spokesperson said.
The company came to the decision after consulting with its environmental, social and governance (ESG) committee as well as internal Hispanic and black leaders, Fox Business reported.
“The private sector is attempting to respond to public policy and government needs and demands in the absence of long standing and widely recognized reforms needed in criminal justice and immigration policies,” the statement continued. (RELATED: Ocasio-Cortez Tweets Back At Trump: ‘I’ll Call Your Bluff’)
“Lacking further legal and policy clarity, and in recognition of the concerns of our employees and stakeholders in the communities we serve, it is our intention to exit these relationships,” the statement concluded.
Bank of America reportedly lended to Caliburn, a company that runs a facility called Homestead, which protesters have alleged functions as a sort of prison, according to the Miami Herald.
JPMorgan Chase announced in March it would cease financing companies involved in private prisons and detention centers.
Border detention centers have come under harsh scrutiny following Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s comparison of detention centers to “concentration camps” on Instagram earlier in June.
Ocasio-Cortez responded to Bank of America’s decision on Twitter, suggesting the move was a victory resulting from her Instagram comments.
“Last week, we called the concentration camps at the border for what they are,” she wrote.
Last week, we called the concentration camps at the border for what they are.
In the week since:
– Acting director of Customs & Border Patrol resigned
– Bank of America announced they will stop financing for-profit immigrant detention & private prisons.Words matter. https://t.co/xzBMotvTSB
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) June 26, 2019
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