Trump’s Mass Detention Machine in Pennsylvania

In a small town named Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, a sign stands in the yard of a residential property, featuring a weeping Statue of Liberty in shame. This town, known for its historical background in timber, industry, and coal, now hosts GEO Group, one of the largest private prison companies in the US. Developers from Cornell Corrections and the state believed that building a prison would help replace lost jobs in the area.

Moshannon Valley Correctional Facility, located on an old strip mine, opened in 2006 and operated as a federal prison for fifteen years. After GEO Group acquired the facility in 2010, it temporarily closed in 2021 and reopened later that year as an immigration detention center, renamed the Moshannon Valley Processing Center (MVPC). Located in a dense forest, MVPC currently houses over 1,600 immigrants who are detained day by day.

Eighty-five percent of those detained at MVPC have no criminal record. In 2025, two immigrants died in ICE custody at MVPC, including Chaofeng Ge, who was found hanging by his neck in a shower stall on August 5. While anti-ICE and anti-detention activists have been campaigning for the closure of the facility, many local residents remain supportive. They argue that the facility provides jobs and tax revenue, and claim that closing it would lead to job losses elsewhere.

Clearfield County Commissioner voted in favor of extending the contract for MVPC, despite ongoing protests from anti-ICE and anti-detention advocates. The facility has become a significant part of Trump's mass detention machine, incarcerating locals and out-of-state transfers in a system designed to isolate immigrants from their family, community, legal counsel, and due process.