DETROIT — Yesterday, ahead of the Detroit Pistons home game against the Chicago Bulls, Worth Rises rallied with local advocates, formerly incarcerated people, and their families to protest for prison phone justice in honor of Mother’s Day. Advocates called on Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores to either finally divest from one of the nation’s largest and most predatory prison telecom corporations, Securus, or sell the NBA team.
“This Mother’s Day, countless mamas can’t speak to their children because they can't afford a prison or jail call. Prison profiteers like Tom Gores are to blame for this, plain and simple. He shouldn’t be allowed to profit from the pain of mass incarceration — to exploit the love between incarcerated people and their families. We demand free prison communication every day, but especially on a day like today, because incarcerated people deserve to be able to say ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ without breaking the bank,” said Bianca Tylek, Executive Director of Worth Rises. “Tom can run, but he can’t hide. We’ve tried our hand at conversations, but his time is up. We got him kicked off the LACMA board, and we’ll keep raising hell at the NBA until he hears our demands — sell Securus or sell the Pistons. He can’t own both!”
“Detroiters are tired of what little wealth we have being extracted from our community. The cost of prison phone calls are no exception. The community has drawn its line in the sand and Tom Gores needs to get with the program. Sell securus or sell the Pistons. It’s that simple: prison profits or basketball. Connect families by securing phone justice for all or go home. Detroit didn’t want you, and we definitely don’t need you now,” said Rai Lanier, Wayne County Director, Michigan Liberation.
A caravan of cars circled Little Caesars Arena with demonstrators chanting and leaning from their windows to display signs. The caravan included a mobile billboard truck made that displayed video, with audio, clips featuring interviews with family members and loved ones of incarcerated people impacted by Securus. The caravan blocked the main staff entrance while players and coaches arrived, causing a significant disruption. Security and executive staff scrambled to find alternate ways for the players and coaches into the building, settling temporarily for a neighbors parking lot. The action forced the diversion of players Jahlil Okafor, Mason Plumlee, Cory Joseph, Dennis Smith Jr., and Killian Hayes upon arrival, several of whom were escorted by staff and security into the building on foot. More than a dozen officers and security staff handed out traffic tickets to the protestors, called four tow trucks to have vehicles removed, and threatened arrest. Protestors left shortly after and continued rounds of the stadium before disbanding.
Securus, owned by Tom Gores’ private equity firm Platinum Equity, rakes in more than $700 million annually charging families — disproportionately from Black, Brown, and economically distressed communities — for phone calls from prisons, jails, and immigrant detention centers. The corporation routinely charges as much as $15 for a simple 15-minute phone call, and piles on sky high deposit fees, among others.
NBA players Mason Plumlee, Cory Joseph, and Dennis Smith Jr. were escorted inside the Arena.
More photos and videos are available upon request.
Background:
Months ago, in a full-page ad in the The New York Times sports section, Worth Rises asked NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and team owners, “If Black Lives Matter, what are you doing about Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores?” The ad ran a week after Worth Rises sent a letter to the NBA Board of Governors calling for the forced sale of the Pistons in light of Gores’ investment with Securus, citing its commitment to racial justice and responsibility to ensure that the NBA remains a welcoming and safe space for all fans. The NBA responded by punting requests for dialogue to Gores’ firm, Platinum Equity, an avenue that had been exhausted over the past two years as was explained in the original letter.
The call for Tom Gores’ dismissal from the NBA board comes on the heels of his forced resignation from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) board in October, the result of weeks of pressure from artists and activists who cited his role as a prison profiteer. As a result of Securus’ predatory practices, which Tom Gores has authorized, one in three families goes into debt trying to stay connected to a loved one behind bars, and 87% of the people carrying that burden are women, largely women of color.