Helping young people leap hurdles
A group of talented young African American men had little hope that the city could help them - until they learned the ways that the city could change.
The majority-Black districts that became Cancer Alley
Lifelong residents of St. James Parish will speak in federal court on Monday about how parish officials and ordinances have, for generations, explicitly directed industrial plants into predominantly Black neighborhoods.
Behind the Lens episode 252: ‘Bleeding out’
Marta Jewson and Katy Reckdahl on a new Louisiana law that requires doctors to keep common maternal health care medications under lock and key. Delaney Dryfoos on a Mississippi River mayors agreement.
Turning schools into ‘miniature fiefdoms’ where leaders feel free to make and break rules
It’s become an all-too-familiar lament in New Orleans that the charter school system lacks accountability and transparency.
The Lens wins four first place awards from Press Club of New Orleans
The Lens took home top honors in the education reporting, continuing environmental reporting and government/political reporting categories.
Licensing a troubled juvenile jail
A year ago, when Jackson Parish opened its new, unlicensed juvenile jail, kids complained of extended stints of solitary confinement, along with extensive abuse and violations. A DCFS inspection supported those claims, but the agency gave the jail a license anyway.
Behind The Lens episode 251: ‘Quite traumatizing’
Nick Chrastil on the use of mace and pepper spray now allowed in juvenile detention facilities. Terry L. Jones on community air monitoring and Delaney Dryfoos on campaigns to call attention to Venture Global's air quality violations.
Pregnant and hemorrhaging, without a key solution within reach
Lawmakers passed a law designed to limit reproductive rights in Louisiana. But it may also limit patients’ chances of surviving common life events like miscarriages and births.
Unlikely alliance forms to boost community air monitoring in Louisiana
A bulk storage facility plans to join with activists from the Louisiana Environmental Action Network to monitor air quality in St. Rose, a ‘Cancer Alley’ community.
Mississippi River mayors agree to unify ports from Louisiana up to Minnesota
The cooperative agreement is the first between the inland ports in the heart of the Corn Belt and the coastal ports of Louisiana, which together export 60% of the nation’s agricultural products.
