louisiana

July 20, 2015 - A by-the-numbers look at the big changes in New Orleans in the decade since Hurricane Katrina hit.

July 3, 2015 - After the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage throughout the nation last week, some Southern political leaders pledged to resist the ruling. Their statements recall Southern politicians' attempts to resist the Supreme Court's decision to end segregation in the 1950s and '60s.

June 29, 2015 - An interview with law professor Angela A. Allen-Bell of the Southern University Law Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on restorative justice, an approach that considers the impact of wrongdoing not only on an individual but on society — and seeks to heal both.

June 17, 2015 - Last week a federal judge ordered the release of Albert Woodfox, who's been held in solitary confinement in Louisiana for 43 years, though a higher court blocked the move while the state appeals. Meanwhile, prisoners are suing over Virginia's policy of placing death row inmates in solitary, arguing that the practice amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.

June 11, 2015 - The high-profile coming out of Olympic champion Caitlyn Jenner, formerly Bruce Jenner, as a trans woman has put transgender issues in the spotlight. Transgender people -- especially trans women of color -- face shockingly high levels of violence, and a disproportionate number of recent killings of transgender people took place in the South. But a new initiative is working for change.

May 22, 2015 - The disaster near Santa Barbara, the site of a 1969 oil spill that sparked the modern environmental movement, comes amid a push to open the Atlantic and Eastern Gulf to oil and gas drilling. It underscores the risk presented by coastal energy development coupled with weak regulation.

May 20, 2015 - Last week Florida became the latest among 28 states that now or will soon offer statewide online voter registration. Evidence shows such systems are less prone to fraud, more cost-effective and popular among voters and elections officials alike.

May 18, 2015 - The Republicans running Mississippi have the prison system in shambles, workers' compensation gutted, education on a precipice — and journalist Joe Atkins looking back to populist Louisiana Gov. "Uncle" Earl Long for solace.

May 12, 2015 - The Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation has launched a "Southern Voices" oral history project to capture the stories of Southern leaders working for social and economic justice. This installment focuses on how organizations in the region are investing in ambitious plans to create diverse, sustainable economic engines.

May 8, 2015 - What do the numbers say about racial segregation in Southern cities? Atlanta, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans are among the most racially divided, while Texas suburbs top the list for integration.