Amid scorching summer temperatures, a federal judge ordered Louisiana to take steps to protect the health and safety of incarcerated workers working in the fields of a former slave plantation, saying they face “substantial risk of injury or death.” The state immediately appealed the decision.
U.S. District Judge Brian Jackson issued a temporary restraining order Tuesday, giving the State Department of Corrections seven days to come up with a plan to improve conditions on the so-called farm line at Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as Angola. .
Jackson called on the state to make changes to policies that address heat. He pointed to problems such as inadequate shade, a lack of work breaks and a failure to provide prisoners with sunscreen and other basic protections, including medical screenings for those especially vulnerable to high temperatures. However, the judge stopped short of fully shutting down the farm line when heat indices reached 88 degrees Fahrenheit (31.1 degrees Celsius) or higher, which is what the plaintiffs had requested.
The order comes amid growing national attention on prison labor, a practice that is firmly rooted in slavery and has evolved over decades into a multi-billion dollar industry. A Two-year investigation by the Associated Press has linked the supply chains of some of the world’s largest and best-known companies – from Walmart to Burger King – to Angola and other prison farms, where incarcerated workers are paid cents an hour or nothing at all. Several companies, including Cargill, have since said they have cut ties or are in the process of doing so with prison farms or companies that use incarcerated labor.
Last year, several men were incarcerated in Angola alongside the New Orleans-based advocacy group Voice of the Experienced (VOTE). filed a class action alleging cruel and unusual punishments and forced labor in the camps of the maximum security prison, which was once a former slave plantation stretching over about 18,000 acres. The men, most of whom are black, said they use hoes and shovels or bend down to harvest crops by hand in dangerously high temperatures as armed guards watch. If they refuse to work or fail to meet quotas, they may be sent to solitary confinement or face other punishments, according to disciplinary guidelines.
As temperatures across the state continue to rise, “coping with the heat in Louisiana has become a matter of life and death,” Jackson wrote in his 78-page decision. “Conditions on the farm line ‘create a substantial risk of injury or death.’”
Lydia Wright of The Promise of Justice Initiative, attorney for the plaintiffs, applauded the decision.
“Farming has caused physical and psychological harm for generations,” she told the AP, adding that it is the first time a court has found the practice to be cruel and unusual punishment. “It’s an incredible time for incarcerated people and their families.”
The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections “strongly disagrees” with the court’s overall ruling and has filed a notice of appeal with the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, spokesman Ken Pastorick said.
“We are still reviewing the decision in full and reserve the right to comment in more detail at a later date,” he said.
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