A campaign from
CoreCivic and The GEO Group are for-profit prison companies who are financed by Citizens Bank. What goes on between their walls is morally reprehensible. Here’s what we found.
Meanwhile, The GEO Group's net income has risen by nearly 700%. CoreCivic's by nearly 70%.
Deaths and suicides
at disproportionate and ever-increasing rates.
"One mental health practitioner for nearly 1,800 detainees."*
Filthy conditions
dangerously lacking in humane medical care.
"Among the dirtiest medical spaces I have ever seen in a U.S. detention facility."*
Labor exploitation
and poverty wages in deplorable work camps.
"Detainees were paid $1 a day for labor worth the state minimum wage."*
Why are Greater Boston Interfaith Organization (GBIO) and Greater Cleveland Congregations (GCC) targeting Citizens Bank?
Who are CoreCivic and The GEO Group? What do they have to do with this, and how is Citizens Bank connected to them?
Is the De-Ice Coalition working on this same issue?
Do GBIO and GCC have enough power to force Citizens to change?
Should I/we move our money now?
Do I have to share how much money I could move?
I only have a small amount of money in my account, will moving my money make a difference?
Isn’t it bragging to share the amount of money in my account?
If we do eventually decide to move our deposits out of Citizens Bank, where should we move them? Aren’t all banks bad?
What are we asking Citizens Bank to do?
How do I get involved?
I heard there's a Trump Executive Order that prevents banks from being pressured to drop clients. Doesn't that make our campaign illegal?
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
JULY 17 • NOT WITH OUR MONEY
The campaign asked congregations to look inward, examine where deposits were held, and make a commitment to act in line with their values.
Public action, direct outreach to Citizens executives, newsletters, social media, press, and partner organizing kept the issue visible until the powerful had to take notice.
GCC and coalition partners held a press conference at Warrensville Center Rd & Cedar Rd, drawing coverage from Ideastream, Cleveland.com, and Cleveland 19.
Citizens said it was now appropriate to exit the credit facilities. Our steering team is analyzing the statement, cautiously optimistic, and celebrating the strong reaction to organized pressure.
HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN SO FAR
Pledging is one thing – making good on our word is another. We will continue to withdraw money until Citizens meets our demands.
HAS BEEN PLEDGED SO FAR
GCC & GBIO have collectively and strategically moved our money out of Citizens Bank and you should pledge to as well.
IN BOSTON AREA
GBIO had a relationship with Citizens Bank – a bank who touts community values – for decades. But when GBIO requested a meeting, the bank called people of faith “false and misleading” and refused to meet – while continuing to finance human cruelty. Not with our money.
ACT NOW - TAKE THE PLEDGE
IN GREATER Cleveland
Citizens Bank holds $6.59 billion from Cuyahoga County but invests just 2.2% back into local housing. Instead, they finance the detention of hundreds of immigrants in nearby Youngstown, Ohio – profiting from the suffering and separation of families. Not with our money.
ACT NOW - TAKE THE PLEDGE
Citizens Bank removes funding from two private prisons
CLEVELAND — Members of the Greater Cleveland Congregations are claiming victory in their effort to put pressure on Citizens Bank, which was funding two private prisons that housed immigrants facing deportation.
Rachel Maddow De-ICE Citizens Bank Segment 7-27-26
A great summary of the successful campaign to de-ICE Citizens Bank.
Citizens Bank Ends Financing for Private Prison Companies, Local Campaign Credits Public Pressure
Citizens Bank announced it will cease financing agreements with two private prison contractors due to new business realities. Meanwhile, advocates, including a Cleveland faith-based coalition, cited a recent campaign against the bank as the driving force.
Citizens Bank to exit prison financing; Greater Cleveland Congregations cites campaign
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Citizens Bank said changing business circumstances, not activist pressure, led it to exit credit facilities for private prison operators CoreCivic and GEO Group, while Greater Cleveland Congregations said months of organizing and withdrawal pledges helped drive the decision.
Greater Cleveland church network demands Citizens Bank end funding for private prisons, ICE jails
CLEVELAND, OH: A network of Cleveland area churches rallied in front of a Citizens Bank branch in University Heights Thursday to demand the corporation cut ties with immigration and customs enforcement jails.
Local church collective demanding policy change at Citizens Bank
UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio (WOIO) - More than a dozen people gathered outside Citizens Bank on Thursday afternoon, demanding they pull investments from private prison companies. The Greater Cleveland Congregations said many churches in the area use Citizens for their banking needs. The group claims the bank is helping two businesses, CoreCivic and GEO Group, invest in ICE detention centers, which the churches say goes against their beliefs. “Citizens Bank is the only major U.S. bank still financing private prison companies,” one religious leader said.
Cleveland faith coalition looks to pressure Citizens Bank with $1.3M withdrawal pledge over ICE detention financing
UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio — A coalition of faith-based groups in Greater Cleveland plans to announce more than $1.3 million in pledged bank withdrawals Thursday as part of a campaign urging Citizens Bank to end financial ties with companies that operate immigration detention centers.
The People’s Shareholder Meeting to De-ICE Citizens Bank: Hundreds protest the bank's support of private prisons and ICE
"The companies they finance, CoreCivic and The GEO Group, have long and well-documented records of medical neglect and preventable deaths at their facilities..."
Protestors rally outside Citizens Bank HQ over ICE funding ties
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Dozens gathered in downtown Providence Thursday morning, calling on Citizens Financial Group Inc. to stop funding companies that operate federal immigration detention centers.
Activists take aim at Citizens Bank, demand exit from ICE detention business
Rally outside Citizens Bank HQ drew unions, clergy and activists, with some groups threatening to pull millions in deposits over ICE-linked business
TAKE ACTION
You can make an impact by taking the pledge, attending a meeting, or even just sharing the campaign with your community. Just reach out to us by visiting our websites below.
JULY 29 • NOT WITH OUR MONEY
Although Citizens has chosen to frame this result as a mere business decision, it comes as the bank was faced with the commitment of thousands of individuals, faith communities, municipalities and organizations to withdraw tens of millions of dollars from Citizens unless it ended its lending relationship with the two companies. There can be little doubt that Citizens saw that our grassroots campaign was real and was only going to grow.
This win is about more than Citizens Bank. It is a demonstration that organizing and coalition building can work to bring about positive change. It signals that individuals, acting together, can make a difference in promoting a more just society.
We have updated our pledge and withdrawn totals to reflect commitments from NJ and PA municipalities voting to leave and pull all deposits from Citizens Bank, including Jersey City ($276 million in June) and Montclair, NJ ($64 million two weeks ago).
You can learn more about this entire campaign effort on last night's The Rachel Maddow Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44qje2mgiiI - our friends at De-ICE Citizens Bank posted a clip of the full story. Greater Cleveland Congregations gets a shout-out at timestamp 6:57. Additionally, an interview with Reverend John Edgerton, Senior Minister of Old South Church in Boston, begins at timestamp 10:24. His congregation is part of the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization (GBIO).