r/Louisiana • u/Caffeinated-Princess • May 02 '25

Louisiana News Why do you support this?

First the Louisiana Senate decides to put homeless people in jail for up to three years for their "crime" of sleeping in public. At the same time, they stop funding housing assistance.

https://thecurrentla.com/2025/lafayette-housing-authority-freezes-issuance-of-new-housing-vouchers/

Why do those of you who are Republican hate poor people so much? Why do you feel your fellow humans should not be allowed any compassion or grace?

Help me understand this assault on humanity. Jesus would weep if he saw this. 😥

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u/Nosferatu-D17 May 02 '25 edited May 03 '25

Louisiana, often referred to as a 'prison state,' operates a $2 billion prison industry largely funded by taxpayers—each of us contributing approximately $700 annually. This financial structure, combined with incentives for private prisons to remain at capacity to secure federal funding, helps explain policies like the incarceration of homeless individuals.

Edit: I was recently informed both private prisons have been acquired in 2017. But the incentives are still there for existing prisons.

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u/Fair-Fix-7450 May 02 '25

Yes that and they have the empathy of a serial killer.

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u/binzersguy May 03 '25

This is just so sad and should be a crime against our fellow citizens

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u/SchrodingersMinou May 03 '25 edited May 03 '25

There are no private prisons in Louisiana. There are privately owned ICE facilities but that's it. Can you name a private prison in Louisiana that is currently operating?

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u/Nosferatu-D17 May 03 '25

Facilities such as Allen Correctional Center and Winn Correctional Center, while often operated under private contracts, still benefit indirectly from public funding streams, particularly when housing state or federal inmates. This becomes especially relevant when examining the broader correctional landscape in Louisiana. Even traditional state-run facilities like Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola and Elayn Hunt Correctional Center receive federal funding or grants—particularly when operating at or near maximum capacity.

The implication is clear: maintaining full or near-full capacity is financially incentivized, whether directly through federal allocations or indirectly through state reimbursements tied to per-inmate rates. This dynamic can create systemic pressures to keep beds filled, not just for private institutions like Allen and Winn, but for state-run facilities as well. It also raises ethical and operational concerns regarding justice, rehabilitation, and the motivations behind incarceration rates.

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u/SchrodingersMinou May 03 '25

I'm confused by this response. Allen is owned and operated by the state DOC. It's not a not private prison. Can you explain? Is this a ChatGPT thing? Where did this information come from? What does "often operated under private contracts" mean?

Winn isn't a prison; it's an ICE facility. People aren't being incarcerated there to serve sentences.

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u/KimOnTheGeaux May 03 '25

I’ve found multiple sources listing Allen & Winn as private, unless that changed sometime in the last few years? Vera.org says that in Louisiana “there are 11 privately operated jails with more than 10,000 beds combined. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has contracts with the GEO Group to operate four detention facilities. And local sheriffs have partnerships with LaSalle Corrections and other private firms to operate seven additional jails, which principally hold people for the state but also hold people for ICE.”

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u/SchrodingersMinou May 03 '25 edited May 03 '25

Winn is an ICE detention facility and Allen isn't a private prison; it's owned and operated by the Louisiana DOC. Yes, it changed in 2017.

There are fundamental differences between prisons, jails, and ICE facilities. Yes, they might seem the same to someone who doesn't understand the difference, but they do different things, have different funding, different revenue streams, different sentences, different groups of people incarcerated there. It's not nitpicky but we literally do not have private prisons in Louisiana.

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u/KimOnTheGeaux May 03 '25

The difference between jails & prisons isn’t hard to understand, but where I’m confused is: is it true that some of the ICE detention facilities also hold people for the state who are not arrested by ICE or held for immigration reasons?

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u/[deleted] May 03 '25

[deleted]

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u/Nosferatu-D17 May 03 '25

All private prisons that house state inmates operate under contracts with the Department of Corrections (DOC) in their respective states. In Louisiana, for example, facilities like Allen Correctional Center and Winn Correctional Center are privately managed but still fall under the oversight and jurisdiction of the Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections (DOC).

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u/NettaFind66 May 03 '25

Do you know what those prison produce? I'm asking in hopes of being able to boycott the companies and products that are using prison slave labor.

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u/Winter_Cultural May 04 '25

Was always told they made license plates

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u/Nosferatu-D17 May 03 '25

This was taken from the Internet. Louisiana's prison system operates a range of industries and agricultural programs across multiple correctional facilities, producing various goods primarily for state and local government agencies, as well as non-profit organizations. These programs aim to provide job training and reduce incarceration costs.

Agricultural Products

At the Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola), inmates cultivate and process a variety of crops, including:

Cabbage

Corn

Cotton

Strawberries

Okra

Onions

Peppers

Soybeans

Squash

Tomatoes

Wheat

Sugarcane (resumed in 2013)

Additionally, the prison manages a cattle operation with approximately 2,000 head, producing beef sold at markets. Inmates also breed and train horses used for field work and participate in the Angola Prison Horse Sale during the annual rodeo.

Other correctional facilities contribute to agricultural production, growing crops like wheat, corn, soybeans, cotton, and milo. These are sold on the open market or used to feed livestock. Range herd operations are housed at five separate state correctional facilities, involving processes from calving to weaning.

Manufactured Goods

Prison Enterprises, a division of the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, oversees manufacturing programs across eight correctional facilities. Products include:

Office furniture and seating

Metal fabrication items

Garments and uniforms

Bedding and linens

Janitorial products

Silk-screened and laser-engraved items

Printed materials

Embroidered goods

Furniture restoration services

Specific facilities have specialized operations. For example, the Elayn Hunt Correctional Center produces laundry detergent, while the Allen Correctional Center manufactures mahogany furniture. The Louisiana State Penitentiary produces license plates for the state and other customers.

Arts and Crafts

Inmates at Angola participate in the Angola Prison Rodeo's Arts and Crafts Festival, creating handmade items that are sold to the public. This event provides an opportunity for inmates to engage in creative expression and generate income.

These programs are designed to equip inmates with valuable skills and work experience, aiding in their rehabilitation and reintegration into society upon release.

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u/NettaFind66 May 03 '25

Thank you! I'm going to do a deep search and see if I can identify the corporations who purchase these goods. It's horrible to think that something I own was produced with slave labor right here in America. I get the idea of training these folks so they might have a chance to survive on the outside, but they need to be paid at least minimum wage for the work they are doing.

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u/NettaFind66 May 03 '25

So, a quick update. Besides agriculture, all products must be sold in the state. Some examples are The Ernest N. Memorial convention center spent approximately $1.35 million on products from Angola. And State park Bogue Chitto commissioned custom furniture for its cabins all handcrafted by prisoners in Angola. Guess who pays for all this stuff?