Louisiana

Louisiana workers fight back against repressive anti-union legislation

Published

1 month ago

April 23, 2024

Louisiana workers fight back against repressive anti-union legislation

The Republican-controlled Louisiana State Legislature, under the leadership of far-right, white supremacist Gov. Jeff Landry, is ramping up its attack on workers. Several new pieces of anti-union legislation have advanced in the Senate, constituting an all-out war on Louisiana workers. Several unions and community organizations, including the Louisiana branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, quickly mobilized in response and took to the streets of New Orleans on April 6 to demand an end to the state’s attack on workers’ rights.

Taken together, the bills introduced amount to a virtual ban on public sector unions. House Bill 572 would prohibit collective bargaining with most public sector unions. Notably, this repressive measure would not impact law enforcement agencies. This is an indication of the power of police unions and their apparent untouchability within the political establishment. Police unions are notorious for protecting killer cops and granting special privileges not afforded to other labor unions. Another bill, House Bill 571, would prohibit government agencies from spending public funds on contract negotiations, and Senate Bill 331 would limit the ways that public sector unions can collect membership dues.

This latest attack on workers comes just weeks after the swift passage of several new racist “tough on crime” bills passed in the Legislature’s Special Session on Crime last month, bound to exacerbate the crisis of over-policing and mass incarceration of Black communities. Now, the legislature is cracking down on even broader swaths of the working class. Among those whose bargaining rights are at stake are the state’s 50,000 public school teachers, whose unions have already been severely undermined by the corporate charter school system built on the wreckage of Hurricane Katrina.

New Orleans city workers, who won an ordinance in the City Council last year that codified their right to organize, fear that their hard-won efforts could soon be reversed. “The legislators are really throwing everything at us all at once to make it harder to fight back against,” said Maria Singer of the New Orleans City Workers Organizing Committee. “Years of work by my colleagues would be destroyed with the passage of many of these bills.”

Grace Reinke, a public sector worker and organizer with United Campus Workers, sees the curtailing of worker’s rights as a targeted measure aiming at repressing worker people, especially in New Orleans. “Conservative elites see growing power in cities like ours and consider it a threat to their interests,” Reinke said. “Anything they can do to make organizing workers harder fits squarely in line with the broader agenda of pushing free-market ideals and maximizing profits at the expense of workers.”

Workers in Louisiana — and all across the Deep South — are among the most exploited in the country. The state consistently ranks among the worst for wages, healthcare access, education, incarceration, and climate impacts. The corporate elite sees the South and its working class as a dumping ground for unwanted externalities. Poor people develop cancer and die when fossil fuel magnates flood their neighborhoods with toxic chemicals; Black working class communities are displaced by wealthy developers seeking new investment opportunities; tens of thousands of migrants are detained in privately-owned immigrant detention centers; the legacy of slavery continues through the violent and racist apparatus of mass incarceration. It would be foolish to divorce the issue of workplace benefits from the myriad of other issues that working class people face.

Workers fight back against anti-union bills in Louisiana. Liberation collage: United Teachers of New Orleans IG; Louisiana state capitol building in Baton Rouge. by Jim Bowen, CC BY 2.0 DEED.

The ruling class establishment has proven that they will only side with labor when it is convenient for them and not overly detrimental to their primary interests– wealthy bankers, business executives and their shareholders. Despite his election promises to be a “pro-union” president, Biden quickly turned his back on labor in 2022 when he chose billionaire railroad executives over their workers. He signed a bill to block a strike and forced Congress to impose a contract that the union rejected, a clear violation of basic labor rights. A vast majority of Democrats voted in favor of the resolution to avert a walkout.

Former Louisiana governor Bel Edwards won in 2015 and 2019 with the help of a strong base of union support and labor endorsements, including the AFL-CIO. Throughout his tenure he signed some modest reforms into law including paid parental leave for Louisiana state employees and a bill codifying employees’ right to leave for health screening. Yet, after eight years of Democratic governorship, the state still ranks as one of the most abysmal for workers. Louisiana is one of over two dozen “right to work” states, a policy which allows workers to opt out of union membership — a victory for exploitative industries and bosses.

We cannot hang our hopes on either of the corporate, ruling class parties to deliver basic rights to the working class. In the capitalist system, both parties are ultimately accountable to the bosses, and hardly ever to workers. No matter what backwards legislation our politicians pass, our movement will not falter. Only an independent, multinational, working class party, which unites all working class people under a socialist program, is capable of building a mass movement to end the dictatorship of the rich and put working people in power.

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Louisiana

Cagin’ the Cajuns: No. 3 Texas A&M Aggies Punch Ticket To Super Regionals With Win Over Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns

Published

5 hours ago

June 3, 2024

Press Room

Cagin’ the Cajuns: No. 3 Texas A&M Aggies Punch Ticket To Super Regionals With Win Over Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns

What better way to get one step closer to glory than in front of your home crowd?

The No. 3 Texas A&M Aggies took down the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns 9-4 Sunday night to win the College Station Regional at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park, successfully defending their home turf with an undefeated record throughout the weekend.

The Aggies struck first in the third inning with an RBI single by Braden Montgomery scoring Travis Chestnut.

Louisiana would knot the game 1-1 the next half-inning, but home runs by Caden Sorrell and Montgomery in the top of the fourth inning essentially sealed the deal for the Maroon and White, giving them a 5-1 lead.

The lead was insured by a home run in the fifth inning by Hayden Schott, and a seventh inning bomb by Ali Camarillo set a new Aggie baseball record for most team home runs in a single season.

In the top of the ninth inning (the Aggies were designated the road team), Gavin Grahovac, the SEC Freshman of the Year, launched a ball into the right field seats to score two runs and take ownership of A&M’s rookie home run record, dethroning Jace LaViolette’s record set just last season.

In Louisiana’s half of the ninth, Louisiana mustered three runs off of base hits and a wild pitch, but the Aggies’ lead proved too great.

Shane Sdao captured a well-deserved win for Texas A&M pitching 5.1 innings, allowing six hits, one earned run, no walks and six strikeouts.

Following the win, outfielder Braden Montgomery was named the MVP of the College Station Regional as he went 2-6 with a home run, a single, and 4 RBI.

The Aggies will use this week to celebrate the weekend and await the Oregon Ducks, who will make a visit to College Station for the NCAA Super Regionals that will start on Friday. Texas A&M and Oregon will battle in a best-of-three series, with the winner moving on to Omaha for the Men’s College World Series.

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Louisiana baseball vs. Texas A&M score updates in NCAA regional bracket

Published

12 hours ago

June 2, 2024

Press Room

Louisiana baseball vs. Texas A&M score updates in NCAA regional bracket

Louisiana baseball is two wins away from a regional championship.

To do it, though, the Ragin’ Cajuns will have to upset one of the best teams in college baseball. UL will face the College Station Regional host Texas A&M Aggies, the third seed in the country.

What channel is Louisiana vs. Texas A&M on today?

Louisiana and Texas A&M will not be on traditional TV, but it can be streamed on ESPN+.

Louisiana vs. Texas A&M start time

Sunday night’s game will start at 7 p.m. Central time.

Louisiana vs. Texas prediction

You can check our predictions for Sunday’s game here.

Louisiana vs. Texas A&M location

Louisiana and Texas A&M will play all their regional games at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park in College Station, Texas.

Louisiana vs. Texas A&M lineups

Lineups will be posted here as soon as they’re announced.

Louisiana baseball schedule 2024

Louisiana enters Sunday’s game at 42-19. You can read the full Ragin’ Cajuns baseball schedule by clicking here.

Louisiana Ragin Cajuns pitcher David Christi (6) throws against Texas Longhorns infielder Jared Thomas (9) during the first round in the NCAA baseball College Station Regional May 31, 2024, at Olsen Field College Station.

Texas A&M baseball schedule 2024

Texas enters Sunday’s game at 46-13. You can read the full Aggies baseball schedule by clicking here.

Louisiana baseball roster

You can check out the Louisiana roster by clicking here.

More Louisiana Baseball: Louisiana baseball fights another day, beats Grambling in College Station Regional

Texas A&M baseball roster

You can check out the Texas A&M roster by clicking here.

College Station Regional schedule

The College Station Regional started on Friday and runs through Sunday, with Monday available for an if-necessary game. For a full schedule, click here.

More Louisiana Baseball: Louisiana baseball: Get scouting reports for Ragin’ Cajuns regional opponents here

College Station Regional bracket

Texas A&M, Louisiana, Texas, and Grambling State are the four teams in the regional. For a full bracket, click here.

College Station Regional tickets

You can get tickets for the College Station Regional by clicking here.

2024 College World Series bracket

You can look at the 2024 NCAA baseball tournament bracket by clicking here.

This article originally appeared on The Courier: Louisiana vs. Texas A&M score updates in NCAA baseball regional

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How to watch Texas vs. Louisiana in the College Station Regional

Published

19 hours ago

June 2, 2024

Press Room

How to watch Texas vs. Louisiana in the College Station Regional

The No. 3 seed Texas Longhorns and No. 2 seed Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns meet for the second time in the College Station Regional and the third time in the last two postseasons with the loser heading home and the winner advancing to face the No. 3 national seed Texas A&M Aggies at 8 p.m. Central on Sunday evening, the first of two games the winner would need to secure against the Aggies to win the regional.

On Friday, Texas used a seven-run fifth inning to blow open a close game in the convincing 12-5 win against Louisiana that included a grand slam by Longhorns shortstop Jalin Flores. Louisiana bounced back in the early game on Saturday by beating Grambling 12-5, scoring four runs in the second and four more runs in the third to take control early against the No. 4 seed in the regional, quickly eliminated.

With the Horns using right-hander Andre Duplantier in the first two games and extending right-hander Gage Boehm to 76 pitches over four innings of Saturday’s 4-2 loss to A&M in 11 innings, Pierce may not have either available for the first game on Sunday, putting some extra pressure on left-hander Ace Whitehead (4-1, 4.33 ERA), named the starter by Pierce after Saturday’s defeat.

Louisiana head coach Matt Deggs will counter with left-hander Chase Morgan, the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year after posting a 4-3 record with a 3.29 ERA by holding opponents to a .207 batting average.

So getting past the Ragin’ Cajuns once again to set up the first of two potential rematches against the Aggies is going to be a difficult chore on Sunday afternoon.