Press Release: In Class Action Filing, Incarcerated Men Report Racism on Angola Prison’s “Farm Line”
Today, plaintiffs in VOTE v. LeBlanc filed a motion seeking to certify a class consisting of thousands of incarcerated men at Louisiana State Penitentiary (“Angola”) who are subject to forced labor on the prison’s “Farm Line.” Certification of the class would pave the way for an end to the unconstitutional and inhumane conditions of forced labor for everyone incarcerated at the prison. Plaintiffs and other incarcerated men filed declarations with the class certification motion sharing stories of the harms that they have experienced as a result of the Farm Line.
“A few years ago, I was picking pecans on Farm Line 24/25. I was waiting to use the portable toilet, when a white gun guard shouted at me to ‘get back in the field, boy,’” said Ray Faria, a man incarcerated at Angola prison. “I believe he meant the term “boy” to be a racial epithet. ... We hear language like that frequently.”
The statements included with the filing feature numerous instances of racist language and degrading treatment, including rampant use of the word “boy” and references to racial tropes.
“I’ve been told to defecate in the field, in plain sight of everyone, like a cow,” reported Joseph Guillory. “Once, a white officer told me, ‘We need a good hanging because these boys are out of line.’”
Some men grew up hearing stories of their ancestors working the fields and reflected on the similarities in their experiences working the Farm Line. “When I’m picking crops by hand like my enslaved ancestors under threat of an armed overseer, I feel angry, irritable, and sad. Because of my recurring nightmares, I struggle to sleep at night,” explained Chadarius Morehead.
Several also noted the lack of purpose and personal autonomy of forced work in the fields compared to other work assignments in the prison.
“I have worked as a kitchen clerk at Angola,” said plaintiff Darrius Williams. “I loved that job. It was safe and better paid. My work contributed to the community. I could take breaks, rest, and drink water when I needed to. There was no gun guard overseeing my work. I know others who have found value working in hospice or getting a vocational certificate.”
(Other excerpts from plaintiff’s declarations included in full press release. Read Here.)
Today’s filing is an important milestone in the case and follows a July ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit which affirmed that the state must comply with an order by the district court to “correct the glaring deficiencies in their heat-related policies” at the prison. In his order, district court judge Brian Jackson said that “[i]njunctive relief is required to preserve and protect human health and safety, especially as the summer heat arrives in full force.”
“Class certification is a major step toward protecting the constitutional rights of everyone incarcerated at Angola prison,” said Lydia Wright, Associate Director of Civil Litigation at the Promise of Justice Initiative. “The State’s operation of the Farm Line at Angola puts at risk the health and safety of everyone incarcerated there, not just the individuals who stepped forward to file this lawsuit. With class certification, the federal court can adjudicate everyone’s claims together, and any relief that’s granted will likewise apply to everyone who could be subject to being forced to work the Farm Line.”
The Farm Line is a specific agricultural work assignment at Angola that is a punitive, dangerous, and inhumane form of discipline akin to nineteenth-century slavery. On the Farm Line, as during chattel slavery, men, many of whom have medical conditions and disabilities, are forced to work Angola’s fields in oppressive heat without proper protection or modern farming equipment.
Filed in September 2023, plaintiffs’ civil rights lawsuit alleges that the Farm Line, particularly during periods of dangerously high heat, violates the Eighth Amendment rights of all people at Angola to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. If certified, the suit will include a subclass of individuals with disabilities, bringing claims under Americans with Disabilities Act and Rehabilitation Act.
Plaintiffs are represented by the Promise of Justice Initiative, Rights Behind Bars, and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. The judge has set a trial date for November 18, 2024.
Learn more:
• Fifth Circuit Ruling and Order – August 15, 2024
• Middle District Ruling and Order – July 2, 2024
• Filing: Plaintiffs’ Application for a Preliminary Injunction and Temporary Restraining Order
• Release: PJI & RBB Challenge Unconstitutional Conditions of Forced Labor at Angola
• Filing: First Amended Class Action Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief
• Release: Incarcerated Men Seek Emergency Order to Stop the Farm Line at Angola
• Report: Punitive by Design: The Farm Line at Louisiana State Penitentiary
• Website: End Plantation Prisons: Forced Labor in the Bayou State
Plaintiff declarations filed in support of the class certification motion: