What's In a Name?

Control the language, control the thought.  Control the thought, control the people.

In 1948 when George Orwell penned Ninteen Eighty-Four (notice the relationship between the date written and the title, in case you ever wondered where it came from?), he introduced constructs known as Newspeak and Doublspeak.  (It's a classic read and a quick read.  We urge anybody who hasn't read it to do so.  Even if you have, it will only take an hour or two to reread it.  It provides great context for the battle we have undertaken against the placement of this prison among our homes.)

Newspeak and Doublespeak were mechanisms of propaganda which allowed the state to control the language; hence, control the thought.  Of course, thought control is people control.

We are presented with the federal government and their hand picked corporate toadies at Prison, Inc., along with their hapless minions in our federal and local governments trying to control the language.

At the last Southwest Ranches Town Council meeting, one of the proponents of the prison took the lectern to chide us all that this prison is not really a prison but is a detention center.

Let's look at terms used to describe this monstrosity that Janet Napolitano and Barack Obama in the executive branch, working with their accomplices in the legislative branch, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Bill Nelson, want to jam down our throats and defile our community with.

• The anti prison residents are calling this an immigrant prison.
• The pro prison faction are calling it a detention center.
• The Town of Southwest Ranches and ICE are calling it a processing center.
• CCA calls a similar facility in Taylor, TX called the T. Don. Hutto (named after CCA co founder Hutto)  residential center.  
• They formerly called it a family residential center.

The facts are that the SWR facility will be bounded by two rows of 15 foot high fences, concertina (razor) wire, microwave intrusion devices, "technology that has not yet been invented (according to CCA official at 11/5 "Informational Meeting.", armed guards, and internally will have maximum security holding cells.  Access will be controlled.  People will be prohibited from entering or leaving the facility by their own will.  Did I mention that there will be armed guards?

SWR Prison Drawing Obtained by Public Records Request

Also, this place will be used to hold immigrants for up to two months or longer.

We believe that this is a prison.  Further, we believe it is a prison for immigrants.  Now you can see where we get the phrase we are using, "immigrant prison", comes from.

If you still disagree, please read the detailed wikipedia entry on what a prison is.

Do the terms "detention center" or "processing center" connote anything remotely resembling the reality of what we described here as the plans for this prison?  Or, are these phrases an attempt to minimize what these things really are and to soften the imagery in your mind?  Are these phrases a purposeful manipulation of the English language for the sole purpose of reducing resistance to the siting of this prison and to get the general population accepting of these as features in ALL of our back yards?  They have these planned Aldento to Aurora, Crete to Essex County NJ, Henderson to Karnes County TX, Ocilla to Orange County CA, and Southwest Ranches to Waco.  From sea to shining sea.

It seems to have worked with at least one SWR resident who spoke at the meeting on Thursday.

We'll now introduce another euphemism.  That euphemism is concentration camp.   We all know what a concentration camp is now because we have rightfully associated that phrase with death camps. But, thinking about the words, concentration camp, they seem benign.  What is a concentration camp?  Is it a concentrated camp where you and your family might spend some quality time together in the Everglades?  Absolutely not.

Buchenwald Concentration Camp 

Family residential centers, residential centers, detention centers, or processing centers DO NOT look like prisons just like a concentration camp does not look like a Yogi Bear target for food in Jellystone Park.

If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, it must be a duck.  This so-called processing center is a prison.  It's a prison for immigrants, as best we know.

Don't be fooled by the government and corporate propagandists.