CUNY Divest, a student-led group advocating for fossil fuel divestment, held a series of walks to all 24 CUNY campuses urging the board of trustees to divest. The CUNY Climate Walk, held from Aug. 21 to 24, originated from a walk of Navajo women earlier this year. The walk, called “Nihígaal Bee Iiná” or “Our Journey for Existence,” mostly focused on the impacts of fossil fuel extraction on the Navajo community in Dinétah, located in southwestern U.S. Darsen Hover, a member of CUNY Divest, said the public reacted positively toward the walk, which already added to support the organization received since its inception during spring 2013. “We had very positive feedback from the people…
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CUNY financially tied to private prison industry
CUNY invests thousands of dollars into private prison companies, said documents obtained by CUNY Prison Divest through a Freedom of Information Act request. The documents revealed CUNY invested $275,200 in total in private prisons as of September 2014. It invested $248,900 in G4S, one of the top private prisons in the U.K. Moreover, it invested $13,300, $8,400 and $4,600 in Corrections Corporations of America, GEO Group Inc. and Aramark, respectively. A private prison operates as a contractor for governmental agencies to house inmates in either public or private jails. Its use surged in the 1980s due to overcrowding, a result of the War on Drugs. This new information gave legitimacy…
