Big Money Left Out in Cold

Who says good ol’ grassroots activism can’t defeat deep-pocket corporations?

In a standoff over construction of a private prison in the town of Kenai, members of the Alaska State Employees Association/AFSCME Local 52 and their counterparts prevailed against the for-profit Cornell Companies. In a high-stakes campaign to win the hearts and minds of voters, says Vinnie O’Connor, a member of the ACU National Steering Committee, the company pumped more than $200,000 into a major advertising effort on television and radio.

"For us, technology was the major factor in this campaign," explains O’Connor. "When people wanted to prepare flyers and leaflets for dissemination at the state fair and such, I referred a lot of them to the AFSCME ACU Web site to download materials. That way, we had the ability to pass on information immediately."

In addition, the members canvassed the community, encouraging their neighbors to write letters to the editor. They also visited with legislators to point out the questionable track record of Cornell and other private-prison companies, which have been scarred by security issues, low pay for COs and high turnover rates. Retiree members got involved, too.

By informing the community, the residents were able to petition for a vote. According to O’Connor, a steward and officer in Local 52’s Nome chapter, when local politicians saw signatures "filling up" the appeal, they had to put the issue on a ballot "in order to save face." Voters rejected the prison by a more than 3-to-1 margin. The Anchorage Daily News reported that voter turnout was so heavy, several precincts ran out of actual ballots and had to use samples.

This is the third time since 1996 that Alaskans have rejected private prisons. (The issue also arose in Anchorage and Delta Junction.) For-profits are now targeting Ketchikan, a rural community, whose mayor wants a prison. "But we’re on it," declares O’Connor. "I’m going down there to find out who the players are."

Beware, Mister Mayor.