Voices from the Gulf

Showing stories 91 through 100 of 818 total stories.

It's a big week this week for those concerned about the Bayou Corne community, located near the site of Texas Brine's sinkhole. Here's what's happening:

Criminalization and Justice

Education and Human Development

Race and Racial Justice

Do Black Lives Matter To Our Schools?

All children have the right to an education. However, harsh disciplinary practices regularly deprive students of that right through the use of out-of-school suspensions and expulsions—which often serve to feed students into the school-to-prison pipeline.

Culture and Traditions

Race and Racial Justice

Africatown’s Plateau Neighborhood

The Plateau section of the Africatown community is often referred to as "Africatown's Bedroom Community.” As the name suggests, the Plateau neighborhood's elevation is higher than any other area of the community. Africatown is surrounded on three sides by water. To the north is Hog Bayou, on the east is the Mobile River and to the south is the Three Mile Creek.

Climate and Environment

Disaster, Response and Renewal

Old Reminder for the New Year

With the kids out of school and things slow for the holidays, I have been using the opportunity to get myself better organized a bit for the year to come. I have amassed quite the collection of business cards, papers, reports – bills too, lol – over the last five years of this journey, and it has been both daunting and liberating to weed out that which has been uselessly taking up space in my life.

Climate and Environment

Disaster, Response and Renewal

Media and Arts

The Great Invisible - Q&A with filmmaker Margaret Brown and Antonia Juhasz

Since 2010, I've followed the development of Margaret Brown’s documentary The Great Invisible, which explores the BP disaster with great care, artistry and respect through the eyes of people on many sides of the issues, from survivors of the rig explosion to unemployed seafood workers and representatives of government and industry.

Climate and Environment

Land and Housing

Race and Racial Justice

Africatown’s Hog Bayou

The historical value of Africatown's Hog Bayou was carved in stone long before the Oil Barons of the world discovered Africatown's valuable wetlands. Africatown's Hog Bayou will forever be known as the place in Mobile where the "African" slaves taught the "American" slaves how to feed themselves and their loved ones after slavery had ended. The last recorded shipment of slaves to arrive in America landed aboard the slave ship Clotilde in 1860. The Emancipation Proclamation was signed in 1863, freeing all slaves.

Climate and Environment

Media and Arts

Art Exhibit in Lafayette, Louisiana Examines “Eco Displacement”

Brandon Ballengée wears many hats. And, as a visual artist, biologist and environmental activist, he often wears them simultaneously.

According to his website, he, “creates transdisciplinary artworks inspired from his ecological field and laboratory research.”

As Ballengée explains, “I’m kind of a strange hybrid mix between an artist and a biologist.”

Disaster, Response and Renewal

Economy and Work

Race and Racial Justice

Trying Not To Drown With The Ship

Byron Encalade grew up on the East Bank of the Mississippi River in Southeast Louisiana’s Plaquemines Parish, raised on a farm on land where his father still lives. He longs for the days when a guy could put in an honest day’s work and still survive. “I really can’t explain how bad it is,” he said, looking across the desolate marina.

Health and Wellness

Land and Housing

Race and Racial Justice

A Successful Africatown Harvest

The history of Africatown's Community Gardens goes back about 55 years. Recently the community proudly showcased its Community Gardens with a ribbon cutting ceremony to kick off its first Share The Harvest Day Celebration. There is however, a dark cloud hovering over the Community Gardens as it does over other parts of the Africatown Community.

Climate and Environment

Economy and Work

Promises! Promises! Promises!

Back in the 60's I could always tell when election time was near. First, city equipment would show up to clean the streets and clear out vacant lots. Then the politician would make an appearance at the Elks and buy a round of drinks for everyone in the place. The next day he would sponsor a chicken and fish fry for the community. At the height of the community outing he would make a speech. That speech would always promise everything but deliver nothing.