Court hearings wrapped up last week in a case brought by inmates working the farm line at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola —an agricultural work assignment, where incarcerated men are forced to work long hours, sometimes in the heat of the summer.

The Gulf States Newsroom’s Kat Stromquist has been in court following this story and joins us to share more details. 

As we await a ruling on whether the case will be certified as a class action lawsuit, we wanted to take a deeper look at the history of prison labor, something many have said is . rooted in racism and slavery.

Nina Mast, policy and economic analyst with Economic Policy Institute, evaluated the issue in a report titled “Forced prison labor in the “Land of the Free,” and joined us to share more. 

Urban flooding has long plagued the Treme neighborhood in New Orleans. Now residents are taking matters into their own hands. 

The Gulf States Newsroom’s Danny McArthur reports on how people living in Treme are figuring out and addressing the root causes of urban flooding.

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Today’s episode of Louisiana Considered was hosted by Adam Vos. Our managing producer is Alana Schreiber. We get production support from Garrett Pittman and our assistant producer Aubry Procell.

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