Economic Justice
BR-NOLA commuter train gets first round of federal infrastructure funding
Louisiana is set to receive its first round of federal infrastructure dollars for five transportation projects across the state, including the proposed commuter rail service connecting Baton Rouge to New Orleans. Gov. John Bel Edwards and state Department of Transportation and Development Secretary Shaun Wilson announced in a joint press release Thursday that the federal […]
Bogalusa workers to join labor strike at federal call centers in 3 states
Frustrated workers at Maximus, the nation’s largest federal call center contractor, plan to go on strike Monday at three of the company’s largest locations in Louisiana, Mississippi and Virginia, to protest what they say are poor working conditions and unsafe COVID-19 policies. The call center workers, who handle the toll-free lines for the Medicare and […]
Affordable housing in the U.S. is increasingly scarce
The United States is facing an expanding gap between how much workers earn and how much they have to pay for housing.
Ineligible Louisiana state employees received over $6 million in unemployment assistance
Louisiana paid out about $6.1 million in unemployment assistance to more than 1,000 state employees “who did not appear to be eligible” from Feb. 20, 2020, to July 24, 2021, the Louisiana Legislative Auditor found. “While some of these employees may have been victims of identity theft, others appear to have received benefit payments for […]
Federal law still treats marijuana as an illegal drug, creating headaches for states
Most states in the U.S. are in violation of a major federal drug statute. The 1971 Controlled Substances Act lists marijuana in the most dangerous category defined in the law, on par with cocaine and heroin because of its supposed potential for abuse and lack of medical applications. But 36 states plus the District of […]
‘Hunker down’ is not enough: 2021 hurricane season showed US isn’t prepared
Marina Lazetic, Tufts University and Karen Jacobsen, Tufts University for The Conversation Hurricane Ida hit New Orleans on Aug. 29, 2021, 16 years to the day after Hurricane Katrina flooded the city. This time the levees held. Billions of dollars invested in reinforcing them had paid off – at least for part of the population. […]
Democrats risk losses in 2022 if they give up on paid leave, advocates say
WASHINGTON — When paid family leave was briefly dropped from congressional Democrats’ massive social spending and climate bill earlier this fall, the outcry was swift. Women and caregivers suddenly were calling lawmakers and advocates, and they were sharing their own stories on social media in huge numbers, said Dawn Huckelbridge, director of Paid Leave for […]
Giving thanks for vaccines, investments in American people, and those fighting gerrymandering
“Unfurrow your brow.” My mom’s frequent admonition to her easily impassioned daughter. I need a lot of reminding. I feel like I’ve been furrowing my forehead nonstop for almost two years straight. But on Turkey Day, I will take a moment, if not the whole day, to unknit that brow and give thanks for small […]
Pfizer’s vaccine for children: A pediatrician explains how it was tested for safety and efficacy
By Debbie-Ann Shirley, University of Virginia Editor’s note: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have granted approval to Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11. Elementary school children in the United States will soon have one more layer of protection to keep them safe from COVID-19. […]
Commentary: Poverty got worse in 2020 as many low-wage workers took the brunt of the economic blows
By Elena Delavega, University of Memphis Poverty in the U.S. increased in 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic hammered the economy and unemployment soared. Those at the bottom of the economic ladder were hit hardest, new figures confirm, suggesting that the recession may have widened the gap between the rich and the poor. The share of […]
Everything we know about work is wrong. The pandemic proved it.
So what can the plight of a little cafe tell you about the state of the American economy and the changing face of work? A lot, as it turns out. The other week, the bistro where my family and I have been grabbing brunch every Sunday since the start of the pandemic announced that it […]
‘We’ve worked out all the kinks,’ Louisiana rental assistance program official says
Even though just a fraction of federal COVID-19 rental assistance money the state received has been disbursed to struggling Louisiana renters, Division of Administration Assistant Commissioner of Administration Desiree Honore Thomas said Thursday that she expects payments to go out sooner from here on out. “We’ve worked out all the kinks,” Thomas said by phone. […]