Protesters Gather Outside Of Michigan Department of Corrections

jailcell-15
jailcell-15

Protesters appeared on Friday outside the Michigan Department of Corrections in Lansing. Alejo Stark with the group Michigan Abolition and Prisoner Solidarity told Michigan News Network the state now imprisons 44,000 people and that prisoners are disproportionately people of color.

“We should think about how we spend the money that we spend,” Stark said. “More than 20% of the state budget is used on the state’s prisons. We’re talking about billions of dollars that are used on prisons. So, we’re talking seriously about whether or not we need prisons, whether or not prisons are solving the problems in our society, or whether they’re actually making it worse.”

The demonstration in Lansing comes ahead of Saturday’s Millions for Prisoners March in Washington, D.C.