by Mike Ludwig | May 29, 2026 | Angola, Chattel Slavery, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Fifth Circuit, Heat Regulations, labor protections, Louisiana, News, Prison Labor
In a ruling that is notably silent on Louisiana’s history of slavery and white supremacy, a federal judge sided with the Louisiana State Penitentiary on May 26, rejecting a request to end the prison’s notorious practice of forcing groups of predominately Black prisoners to perform grueling farm labor on the grounds of a former slave plantation. Commonly known as Angola…
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by Rudi Keller | Jan 27, 2026 | Administrative Segregation, Extreme Weather, Missouri, News, Prison Labor, snowstorm
With temperatures hovering near zero and windchills approaching minus 20 degrees, Spain Bady was ordered to leave his cell at Algoa Correctional Center on Saturday morning and clear snow from prison walkways. He refused, telling the corrections officer directing him to go outside that he has been enrolled in education programs and is exempt from labor assignments. That is not what the prison…
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by Sonali Kolhatkar | Oct 24, 2025 | California, labor, News Analysis, Prison Labor, Prisons, Wildfires
California relies heavily on incarcerated firefighters to protect life and property, but pays them a pittance. Recently, a major grassroots and legislative push to improve working conditions for incarcerated firefighters enjoyed some success. On October 13, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 247 into law, raising their base pay and doubling the amount by which they can reduce their sentences.
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