AFSCME’S Eliot Seide
State employees with the AFSCME union tell lawmakers at the State Capitol this afternoon they’re opposed to re-opening the privately-owned prison in Appleton. AFSCME Council Five head Eliot Seide contends prisons that incarcerate people for profit are immoral — and says the company wanting to lease the prison to the state is a “trojan horse.” Seide says Corrections Corporation of America would collect an “enormous amount of money” from the state lease which will be used to run private prisons around the country — with the ultimate objective of also having a privately-run prison in Minnesota. Appleton-area interests are pushing hard to re-open the prison, saying it will bring high-paying union jobs and give that part of the state a much-needed economic boost. AFSCME union members are also lobbying lawmakers today for new funding for state road, bridge and transit projects — and they want more staff at state-run mental health facilities, where Seide says some employees are getting beat up.