Guests
Where’s Louisiana Tech’s loyalty to professors whose opinions provoke death threats?
By Andrew C. McKevitt Louisiana Tech’s motto is “Ever Loyal Be.” This month I learned those words come with an asterisk. When a politically motivated outrage mob deliberately twisted and misrepresented my words in an effort to get me fired and chill free speech on college campuses, Louisiana Tech’s leaders caved. In the process they […]
COMMENTARY: RBG is gone. This is why we fight.
By Susan J. Demas, Editor-in-Chief, Michigan Advance Ruth Bader Ginsburg, best known as a steely champion of women’s equality, gave voice to the voiceless. And as a legendary Supreme Court justice, she was committed to ensuring their rightful place in America until the day she died. We have lost so much as a country during […]
Will a COVID-19 vaccine be safe?
by Trish Zornio for Colorado Newsline In normal times, vaccine safety is easily recognized. These aren’t normal times. Despite robust science, public trust of a COVID-19 vaccine is at an all-time low. After months of coronavirus lies and misinformation fueled by President Trump, a recent poll found 54% of Americans would not get immunized if the […]
COMMENTARY: Virus toll ranks high in SEC country, but teams won’t break the huddle
As you probably expected, the Southeastern Conference dominates the preseason national rankings. As of Tuesday, Florida could claim the title of No. 1 in the country, reporting the highest weekly per-capita death rate from coronavirus nationwide. Go Gators! Texas, home of the Texas A&M Aggies, had the second-highest per capita death rate, followed by Mississippi […]
Without the $600 added to unemployment checks, I don’t know how my family will survive
By Travis Smith Congress will soon be debating legislation that will determine if families like mine will be able to stay above water. My wife and I are both unemployed and blessed to have been receiving the Pandemic Unemployed Compensation from the CARES Act introduced in March. It has been a tremendous help while we […]
Pollution left us in St. James Parish vulnerable to COVID-19; now industry wants to build bigger
By Stephanie Cooper I grew up in St. James Parish, on a country road off Highway 18 on the west bank of the Mississippi River, before a dozen polluting petrochemical plants were built here, before my community became known as Cancer Alley and before our long exposure to industrial air pollution helped lead to some […]
COVID-19 infections in the prison system concern us all
By Andrea Armstrong At a July 8 press conference, Dr. Alex Billioux, assistant secretary of health for the Office of Public Health, attempted to explain why the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) does not provide independent data on COVID-19 in Louisiana prisons and jails. First, Billioux said prisons and jails are not public health risks […]
We can’t reform police departments if civil service boards tolerate abuse
Fr. Richard R. Andrus Jr., SVD The fact that Officer Robert Moruzzi continues to serve on the Baton Rouge Municipal Fire and Police Civil Service Board is a moral disgrace. In Louisiana, civil service boards hear appeals from police officers who have been disciplined for professional violations, including for using excessive force. I started paying […]
Money wasted on abortion fights could help struggling Louisianians
By Pearl Ricks, Reproductive Justice Action Collective On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 to strike down Louisiana’s admitting privileges law. The majority ruled that Louisiana’s law was essentially identical to a Texas law the court struck down in 2016. The court also ruled that Louisiana providers can go to court to defend the […]