This topic came up at my school recently. Many educators (of students in economically disadvantaged schools that lack technology) are outraged that prisoners will have 100% access to devices while students will not. I’d obviously rather see students have the technology, but this is a for-profit company giving out tablets. They aren’t going to just give them to schools.

It got me thinking, should prisoners have constant access to technology? And if so, should we allow the company (in this case J pay) to give them the tablets so that the company can profit off of the apps and emails etc? Prices haven’t been posted, but J pay has a history of charging exorbitant fees to transfer money to prisoners. Each email is reportedly $0.50.

I can see the benefits of making it easier for prisoners to access educational resources and remain in touch with family. What do you think?