The Promise of Justice Initiative sends letter to Governor Edwards, demanding protection for incarcerated people Post Hurricane Ida
Update: On September 20, 2021 PJI, along with our community partners, sent a follow up letter to Louisiana State Governor, John Bel Edwards. Read the letter here.
The Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI) calls on Louisiana State Governor, John Bel Edwards, to keep incarcerated people in Louisiana safe in the aftermath of the devastation of Hurricane Ida, and to express our grave concern for the health, safety, and wellbeing of Louisiana’s incarcerated residents. The letter was sent to the Governor’s office on September 3.
The letter details the conditions that incarcerated people are housed in. For example, in several parishes, like St. Charles and Lafourche, incarcerated people were not evacuated despite a mandatory evacuation order. Family members of other incarcerated people don’t know about the whereabouts of their loved ones, and worry about the spread of COVID-19 in already ill equipped facilities.
The destruction caused by Hurricane Ida, particularly flooding and power outages, is widespread and severe, but it was not unexpected. Louisiana residents are all too familiar with the seasonal threat of hurricanes, and incarcerated Louisianans face unique threats of being housed in aging, often already structurally compromised buildings; not being able to make their own decisions regarding evacuation and preparedness; not being able to contact their families and loved ones readily; living in a congregate setting during a still-raging pandemic; and having limited access to information and updates about storms and recovery. Because of these heightened dangers for incarcerated Louisianans, we encourage the Governor’s office to share information and allow advocates and loved ones to assist in ensuring the safety of our incarcerated community members.
The letter states: “The safety of our incarcerated Louisiana residents is an integral component of hurricane preparedness in our state. Thousands of Louisiana families have loved ones behind bars and are forced to face agonizing decisions regarding evacuation, preparation, and post-storm restoration without the help of their incarcerated family members.”