NANA Shareholders Express Concerns Over Corporation’s Involvement in Immigration Detention Centers
Multiple shareholders of NANA, a regional Native corporation in Alaska, have raised issues regarding the corporation’s ties to immigration detention centers like the one located at the Guantánamo Bay naval base in Cuba. The concerns stem from NANA’s subsidiary Akima, which operates various federal government contracting services, including running migrant detention facilities.
Criticism has been directed at Akima Infrastructure Protection for winning a significant contract from the Biden administration to manage the Guantánamo Bay facility, where up to 30,000 migrants may be detained. Additionally, reports of civil rights abuses at other migrant detention centers run by Akima Global Services have raised alarms among immigrant rights advocates and NANA shareholders alike.
Despite attempts to reach out to NANA representatives for comment, there has been no response from the corporation’s leadership on this issue. Shareholders like Jackie Qataliña Schaeffer and Kat Napaaqtuk Milligan-McClellan have organized surveys and expressed their disapproval of NANA’s involvement in operating detention centers. They argue that such practices go against Iñupiaq values that prioritize dignity, respect, and integrity.
The lack of transparency from NANA has left shareholders frustrated, with calls for terminating contracts with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement growing more fervent. The results of the survey conducted by concerned shareholders have indicated a majority opinion against NANA subsidiaries running detention centers. As the issue continues to escalate, shareholders demand a direct response from NANA’s board to address these ethical concerns.
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