[Peace-discuss] Methodist Church Pulls Investments from Private Prisons

[Robert Naiman]

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Private prison operators have lost a high-profile investor, now that
one of the nation’s largest Protestant churches has pulled its money
from the companies.

The General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United
Methodist Church, “after six months of study, discussion and prayerful
consideration,” announced on January 3 that it had withdrawn nearly $1
million in stocks from two private prison companies, Corrections
Corporation of America (CCA) and the GEO Group.

A spokesperson for the board said the decision was not based on
finance, but morality. “Our board simply felt that it did not want to
profit from the business of incarcerating others,” Colette Nies,
managing director of communications for the board, told The Crime
Report.

She added: “We believe that profiting from incarceration is contrary
to Church values.”

[...]

http://www.allgov.com/Controversies/ViewNews/Methodist_Church_Pulls_Investments_from_Private_Prisons_120221

-- 
Robert Naiman
Policy Director
Just Foreign Policy
www.justforeignpolicy.org
naiman at justforeignpolicy.org