Louisiana sanctions use of pepper spray and mace on detained juveniles
In July, a new state law put all Louisiana pretrial juvenile detention centers under the umbrella of the state Office of Juvenile Justice. Soon after, the agency filed an ‘emergency order’ approving the use of ‘chemical agents’ in those facilities.
Recent Posts
Humorous, Yet Dead Serious
Prankster activists target Venture Global LNG, to bring attention to the lives affected – and lost – around liquified natural gas plants.
To bring insurance companies back to Louisiana, some suggest tackling it as a federal issue
At the height of hurricane season, Congressional candidate Devin Davis announces a plan to combat Louisiana’s home-insurance crisis. U.S. Rep. Troy Carter says he’s focused on a more apt federal concern: FEMA’s flood-hazard ratings.
Pencils, Laptops, and Guaranteed Income
Across the nation, there’s been an increase in programs looking at ways to help lift up young people – and move them from poverty into more secure futures. Administrators at Rooted School saw fewer absences, a jump in reading scores, and a boost in independence for students who received $50 weekly stipends.
Formosa Plastics returns to fight again
In January, an appeals court injected new life into Formosa’s plans to build a huge plastics plant in St. James Parish. But to make plastic requires vinyl chloride, which already has a toxic 40-year track record in Louisiana.
‘Grossly insufficient’: Judge blasts DOC-suggested fixes for Angola’s Farm Line
Recent ruling “another clear signal that the State must end the Farm Line altogether,” said a lawyer for incarcerated workers.
President Biden announces $150 million in research grants for cancer “moonshot” initiative
Near Louisiana’s Cancer Alley, the president and first lady prioritize goal to halve the nation’s cancer death rates within roughly the next two decades.
opinion
The heartbreaking but necessary work of covering school closures
Elevating family voices in a decentralized system. Republished with permission from The Grade.
Protecting Louisiana Workers is a Hot Topic
As heat sets new records across the nation, the risks that people face on-the-job are on the rise, especially in summer months.
Our Lives or LNGs?
The right evacuation plan can save lives. Another LNG plant in Plaquemines Parish makes that impossible.
No longer ‘half slave, half free’
Supposedly, the Civil War dismantled the politics that pitted “slave states” against “free states.” And yet the effect of the punishment-exception clause in the Thirteenth Amendment was to not only sanction the preservation of slavery and involuntary servitude, but also to extend it nationwide.
PODCAST
Behind the Lens episode 250: ‘Insurance Crisis’
Delaney Dryfoos on the continuing homeowners insurance crisis for Louisianans, and one politicians proposal to fix it. Marta Jewson reflects on covering school closures.
About the Lens
The Lens aims to engage and empower the residents of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. We provide the information and analysis necessary to advocate for more accountable and just governance.