louisiana legislature
April 26, 2023 -
In the last couple of months, several Southern state legislators have jumped from the Democratic to the Republican Party, in some cases handing veto-proof supermajorities to the GOP. While the switchers may gain more clout in the short term, they often face electoral consequences.
November 18, 2021 -
Voting rights groups have challenged election districts for the Louisiana Supreme Court, which counts just one Black justice among its seven members. Legislators want to add new districts to settle the suit, but their most recent attempt broke down over the issue of how many should have majority-Black populations.
April 28, 2021 -
Republican-controlled legislatures are restructuring the judicial branches in three Southern states in ways that could benefit the GOP and threaten judicial diversity. By contrast, legislatures in several other states in the region could expand appellate courts in ways that foster greater diversity on the bench.
March 24, 2021 -
In the wake of historic Black Lives Matter protests, Republican lawmakers in Southern states have introduced two dozen bills this year that could lead to new criminal charges for protesters — even peaceful ones. Most Southern states already have at least one such law on the books.
March 28, 2019 -
After the state legislature failed to revamp a judicial voting district found to be racially discriminatory, a federal court has picked a technical advisor from California to do the job instead. Will the non-white voters of Terrebonne Parish finally get a fair shot at electing a judge of their choice next year?
May 11, 2018 -
With protests ongoing over the planned Bayou Bridge oil pipeline, the Louisiana legislature advanced a bill this week creating new crimes with stiff penalties for conspiracy to trespass on pipeline property — part of a broader trend of states and the federal government targeting protest actions.
August 17, 2017 -
Law professor Angela A. Allen-Bell of Southern University discusses the connections between slavery and mass incarceration in the context of the planned Aug. 19 march in Washington, D.C. The gathering is calling for the 13th Amendment's enslavement clause to be amended to abolish legalized slavery in prisons.
