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To: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo
Tell Cuomo to Stop Using Prison Slave Labor to Make Hand Sanitizer
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is using prison slave labor to provide hand sanitizer to NYS schools and municipalities free of charge.
Cuomo announced that, due to price gouging, New York State would develop its own line of hand sanitizer and make it readily available to all NYS schools and municipalities free of charge. While we applaud the Governor for taking measures to help New Yorkers combat the coronavirus, the use of prison slave labor to produce this hand sanitizer is morally reprehensible.
The hand sanitizer is being made by Corcraft, a company that, thanks to state law, [move: is exempt from competitive bidding with other companies and] pays inmates between $0.16 and $0.65 per hour while averaging $48 million in sales per year and is exempt from competitive bidding, so state agencies are mandated to purchase their goods.
Why is this important?
The prison population is one of the most vulnerable populations in our society, with millions of prisoners suffering with chronic conditions that leave them immunocompromised, thousands of people living together in close quarters, hundreds of visitors circling through daily, and healthcare facilities that are substandard and understaffed. In many prisons across the country, hand sanitizer recommended by the Centers for Disease Control is forbidden due to its high alcohol content. [source] To force this vulnerable population to make 100,000 gallons of hand sanitizer a week for pennies on the dollar is unconscionable.
Join MoveOn members in demanding Governor Cuomo stop using prison slave labor to make hand sanitizer.