The flood of youthful refugees into the United States from Central America has caused many anti-immigration protesters to see red. But some corporations see gold in the stream of children fleeing violence.

Private prison companies Geo Group and Corrections Corporation of America are anticipating filling unoccupied detention space with immigrant families if Congress passes funding legislation proposed by the Obama Administration, according to Mica Rosenberg of Reuters. If some of the youth are required to wear monitoring systems, as has been proposed by Arizona Republican Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake, Geo would win again—a subsidiary of that company is the sole provider of ankle monitor bracelets to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Airlines are also getting a piece of the pie. ICE contracts with charter company CSI Aviation for deportation flights. And as children are flown from detention centers to their families around the country, American Airlines has been the carrier of choice.

The Department of Health and Human Services, which is responsible for unaccompanied children, contracts out the case management of children released from temporary shelters. Much of the work goes to General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT), a division of the folks who brought you the F-16 fighter jet, General Dynamics. GDIT has received about $13 million in contracts since 2010 to assist the Office of Refugee Resettlement. Now, according to Reuters, the company is advertising for bilingual social workers to gear up for the crush of expected business.

And in case you think the situation is putting the government in deep doo-doo, fear not. A Justin, Texas, company, Products Unlimited, has been awarded $40,000 in contracts so far this year to provide diapers and training pants for immigrant babies and toddlers.

-Steve Straehley

To Learn More:

Private Companies To Profit As U.S. Shelters Immigrant Children (by Mica Rosenberg, Reuters)

Immigrant Detention Bed Quotas Cost Taxpayers, Profit Private Prison Companies (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)

$2 Billion a Year Industry: Housing Illegal Immigrants (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)

Private Prison Industry Helped Create Anti-Immigrant Law in Arizona (by Noel Brinkerhoff and David Wallechinsky)