Demonstrators outside the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia.
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Demonstrators outside the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia.

A debate is going on over the operation of immigration detention centers. Georgia’s Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin is one of the largest in the country. It is run by a private company. There are many like it. Critics say those private facilities are problematic. This month, a Department of Homeland Security subcommittee recommended continuing the use of private immigrant detention facilities with greater oversight. A Homeland Security Advisory Council however didn't agree with the report's recommendation regarding private detention centers and said they should be phased out. We talked more about this with Azadeh Shahshahani, the legal and advocacy director with Project South.