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Boycott Citizens Bank

@boycottcitizens.bsky.social

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Exploring strategies for nonviolent resistance to the mass detention, deportation, and surveillance of our neighbors. Calling on Citizens Bank to stop financing GEO Group and CoreCivic. www.boycottcitizens.org | Art by Pete Railand

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 11d

ICE couldn't terrorize our communities to this degree without the hundreds of companies that provide it with goods and services—many of which also have contracts with blue cities and states.

*View map from browser, not app. Key on bottom (mobile) or side (computer). Click on pins for more info.

Who's Profiting from ICE? - Google My Maps

ICE depends on a web of private companies, local law enforcement, and elected officials around the country to support its work. This map includes: • Organizations receiving funding from ICE from FY...

www.google.com

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 13h

I say this as a huge believer in boycotts: statistically, it really is true. There are hundreds each year, and most don't reach the level of the ones you mentioned.

But I actually think that's ok, and that there's value to the practice that can't be measured by its impact on share price or sales.

Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 14h

Critics point out that most boycotts don't impact companies’ bottom lines significantly enough to lead to policy changes, and they're right.

But if I found out my bank was renting out a room for someone to keep people in cages, I'd still tell everyone I know and would never do business there again.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 16h

Companies like CoreCivic and GEO offer pocket change from the massive government contracts paid for with taxpayer dollars.

That is our money.

We should demand that it shows up in hurting communities not as cages, but as schools, hospitals, and jobs that pay well and offer a future.

/End

Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 16h

Just as important, there are also leaders offering their communities alternative visions for their identity and economic revitalization.

After seeing a brief clip of Rev. Antwon Nixon speaking about the Folkston facility, I had to look him up.

His story is worth reading.

The pastor of a small church in a tiny town works to make a big difference

When the Rev. Antwon Nixon returned to his Georgia hometown, he didn't expect the call that would lead to his becoming a minister who would expand his church beyond its walls, all the way to the neigh...

faithandleadership.com

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 16h

Despite limited resources and options, there are communities fighting back against ICE detention contractors.

For months, Leavenworth, KS has been engaged in a legal battle with CoreCivic over a requirement that the company comply with development regulations by applying for a special use permit.

Kansas town to continue legal push against CoreCivic, despite federal involvement • Kansas Reflector

Leavenworth officials aren’t backing down from holding CoreCivic accountable even after the U.S. Department of Justice jumped into the case.

kansasreflector.com

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 16h

According to GEO’s website, it has provided a total of $15,700 in scholarships to Folkston students.

Just over half as much as the $30,000 that FEC records show its PAC has donated to Georgia Republican Congressman Buddy Carter.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

What about other benefits to the community?

“County administrator Hull says GEO Group has been a great partner in the community, providing scholarships and sponsoring community events for a town where more than a third of the people live below the poverty line,” according to the NPR story above.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

Those who have spoken out to dispel the idea that GEO brings good jobs include local officials like former Conroe, TX mayor Toby Powell, who opposed the opening of a second ICE facility in his community in 2017.

Screenshot:

The people of Conroe are getting a new, 1,000-bed immigrant detention center whether they like it or not. The GEO Group Inc., one of the largest private prison corporations in the nation, has already broken ground at the site of what will be the first new Trump-era immigration lockup. “It’s going ahead; I don’t think I have any say-so,” said Toby Powell, Conroe’s 76-year-old mayor.

In April, the federal government awarded GEO a contract to build and operate the $110 million facility, which the company says will earn $44 million in annual revenue. GEO promises to bring nearly 340 jobs to Conroe, a city of 82,000 tucked in the pines just north of Houston. Conroe already hosts an even larger immigrant detention center and a mental health facility, both run by GEO.

But Powell is not impressed. “The majority are $20,000-a-year jobs, which are right at the poverty line, if not below,” he said. It’s true the city will get some new property taxes, “but by the time you think about the burden upon your infrastructure with the low-paying jobs, it’s pretty well gonna wash out.”

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

The opening of an ICE detention facility also brings jobs. For Folkston, GEO has brought about 200 jobs so far.

There are, of course, serious concerns about the nature and quality of those jobs.

“Well, you're in a poverty level where you just think about, how can I get money in my pocket? And that's where they bring up this, you know, ‘we just don't have jobs’ conversation. But I say that this is just something you don't want to build your future upon - something that changes every four years,” 24-year-old local resident Savannah Pollock said.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

For context, a GEO press release from August said that, with the expansion, the Folkston facility “is expected to generate approximately $66 million in incremental annualized revenues at full occupancy.”

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

GEO will pay $260k/year in administrative fees to the county for the Folkston facility.

In a June press release announcing the facility's expansion, Rep. Buddy Carter said GEO will also pay $600k/year for water and sewage services.

Screenshot of a Charlton County Document from Glenn Hull, County Administrator. Highlighted is a portion that says, "The administrative fees established under this amendment are as follows:
-Folkston Processing Center: $30,000 annually, paid monthly at $2,500
-Folkston Annex: $30,000 annually, paid monthly at $2,500
-D. Ray James Processing Center: $200,000 annually, paid monthly at $16,666.66

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

"If it's not here, it's somewhere else. So you take advantage of the stuff that you have on your table. And I hate to simplify it to that because these are people's lives and families, but that's the reality of it," said Charlton County administrator Glenn Hull.

Hundreds of ICE detainees will soon be held in the small town of Folkston, Ga.

The ICE detention center in Folkston, Ga., is expanding to become the nation's largest immigrant detention facility. Operated by a private prison corporation, it will hold more than 4,000 detainees.

www.npr.org

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

For officials in struggling rural communities like Folkston, Georgia, where more than a third of people live below the poverty line, a detention facility can seem like an economic lifeline.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

19 out of 21 GEO Group-run ICE detention facilities are in communities with poverty rates higher than the national average.

Bar chart titled “Poverty Rates in Communities with GEO Group ICE Detention Facilities.” The chart compares city poverty rates to the national average of 11.1%, shown as a dashed blue line. Bars represent rates for 18 cities including Adelanto, CA; Alexandria, LA; Pompano Beach, FL; Jena, LA; Robstown, TX; Newark, NJ; Aurora, CO; La Villa, TX; Folkston, GA; McFarland, CA; Conroe, TX; Karnes City, TX; Encinal, TX; Bakersfield, CA; Philipsburg, PA; Baldwin, MI; Tacoma, WA; Pine Prairie, LA; Laredo, TX; and Basile, LA. Most bars rise well above the national average, with Baldwin, MI notably the highest. Source: data.census.gov, 2023.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

Exploitation is the foundation of The GEO Group’s business model. Exploitation of marginalized people. Exploitation of taxpayers.

And exploitation of their employees and the communities where they operate. 🧵

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

Oh, wow. That's horrifying.

They must be buying through a 3rd party, but this company is going on the map for sure. Thank you!

Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 17h

"I couldn't protect my child." 💔

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 22h

One of them has his & does carry it; the other isn't old enough yet. Someone suggested using a passport card, which seems like a good option.

The real anxiety, of course, is knowing that there isn't a "right" enough way to prepare them for possible interactions with lawless thugs.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 1d

Is it time to have my two half-Hispanic teenage sons carry copies of their birth certificates in their wallets? Do both of them need to show papers, or will the one that looks white be ok? Is a photocopy good enough, or should it be certified? Would passports be better?

God, I really hate this.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 1d

Boycotting isn't just about wielding our power as consumers; it's also about wielding our power as citizens and neighbors.

The term 'boycott' itself comes from the name of a 19th-century English land agent in Ireland whose community ostracized him to protest the unfair treatment of tenant farmers.

Graphic with an image of a masked ICE officer wearing sunglasses, tactical gear, and a hat. Alongside it is a quote from Charles Stewart Parnell's 1880 speech encouraging the ostracism of Charles Cunningham Boycott:

You must shun him on the roadside when you meet him, you must shun him in the streets of the town, you must shun him in the shop, you must shun him on the fair green and in the market place, and even in the place of worship, by leaving him alone, by putting him in moral Coventry, by isolating him from the rest of the country, as if he were
the leper of old.

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 1d

“America has never been a place where people need to ‘show one’s papers.’ Ticketing a lawful permanent resident — and forcing him to appear in court and pay a fine for not carrying their papers — is unnecessary and cruel,” said Ed Yohnka, communications director for the ACLU of Illinois.

Gregory Pratt @royalpratt.bsky.social · 1d

NEWS: ICE gave a Rogers Park man a $130 ticket for not having his papers on him. They rounded him up last week and eventually let him go, but not without a fine that some critics say is un-American. Trump admin enforcing little-used law
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/13/i...

ICE tickets Chicago man with legal residency $130 for not having his papers on him: ‘It’s not fair…I’m a resident’

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement fined Rueben Antonio Cruz $130 for not having his papers with him.

www.chicagotribune.com

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 1d

Industry executives told ProPublica that "at least half a dozen companies vying for a slice of the $45 billion Congress has allocated for immigration detention work had hired Sowell because he had led them to believe his connections to Homan would help their chances of winning government work."

ProPublica @propublica.org · 1d

A Pennsylvania businessman who had Tom Homan on his payroll led companies to believe his connections to the future border czar could help advance their bids for government work, industry executives said.

Trading on Tom Homan: Inside the Push to Cash in on the Trump Administration's Deportation Campaign

www.propublica.org

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 1d

Must-read reporting on another of a growing number of what might be called 'faux-bid' contracts — ones with contracting processes that technically allow for multiple bidders, but timelines or parameters so restrictive as to effectively eliminate any real competition.

Dan Friedman @dfriedman.bsky.social · 4d

A tiny firm with no experience, but lots of Trumpworld ties, got a massive contract from DHS. A rival says the award was rushed and "unlawful."

Massive DHS "self-deportation" contract challenged as secretive and "unlawful"

The “rushed” deal worth up to $915 million was handed to a firm with “no track record” as a federal contractor, a rival's lawsuit alleges.

www.motherjones.com

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Boycott Citizens Bank @boycottcitizens.bsky.social · 2d

Burkeville is pretty close to Jasper, known for a lynching that happened there in 1998.

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Reposted by Boycott Citizens Bank

Donna Ladd said what she said. 😘 @donnerkay.bsky.social · 4d

Beautiful writing and storytelling by YMP teenage journalists. Must-must read to the end, including their ICE and Geo Group interview:

Ashton Pittman @ashtonpittman.bsky.social · 4d

ICE left David, a 17-year-old boy, stranded on the side of Interstate 20 after pulling over his immigrant father, Hector, in Mississippi.

David began running in the scorching sun after the car and watched as it disappeared from sight—soon headed to a Louisiana ICE prison.

Here's their story.

ICE Stranded a 17-Year-Old on I-20 After Arresting His Father. The Mississippi Dad Now Faces Deportation.

A 17-year-old watched as ICE arrested his immigrant father, Hector, on I-20 in June. The family faces mounting legal fees and the risk of deportation.

www.mississippifreepress.org

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