Thread by @AbolitionAtCUNY

The university which prides itself on serving communities of color should not be investing in the exploitation of our communities. It is time for CUNY administration to cut ties w/ Corcraft, divest from prisons, and support the call for #ClemencyNow

Tinyurl.com/CUNYDivestFrom…

Link to read the full open letter penned to @ChancellorCUNY, CUNY Board of Trustees and @NYGovCuomo in petition above and here: docs.google.com/document/d/1y_…

"CUNY’s endowment has ​over $275,000 worth of investments​ in the private prison industry; funding corporations such as Geo Group, Inc., the Corrections Corporation of America, Aramark, and G4S"

Since 2009, CUNY has purchased over $245,000 worth of products from Corcraft, which exploits and extracts forced labor from incarcerated people.

Despite yielding $53 million for NY State in 2019, Corcraft pays incarcerated people $0.16 - $0.65 an hour.

For years, students have been calling for CUNY to divest from prisons and more recently, to cut ties from Corcraft. Despite students at @USSCUNY, which represents all 25 campuses passing a resolution for CUNY to divest, @ChancellorCUNY and college presidents have yet to act.

We recognize that the financial incentives underlying mass incarceration motivate the state (@NYGovCuomo) to deny requests for clemency or parole, even as COVID-19 spreads in prisons. As of Dec. 19th, 2,368 incarcerated people have tested positive. 19 have died.

We demand that CUNY, as a public institution that asserts they stand for racial justice and *collects donations on behalf of its Black and Brown students*, ceases to partake in the exploitation and death of our communities.

To support this call, you can sign/share the petition above and pressure @ChancellorCUNY, Board of Trustees, and your college president of choice. Notable ones who have dismissed this demand: @HunterPresident @LehmanPresident

Also follow, support, join @RAPPcampaign in their work to release aging people in prisons. And @IWOC_NYC in their work to abolish prison slavery in NY State.