People of color are underrepresented in jobs at oil refineries and chemical plants across the country, according to a new peer-reviewed study, with some of the most extreme disparities in Louisiana. Differences in education do not explain these outcomes, the study found. The researchers at Tulane Law School and the University of Massachusetts Amherst discovered that when people of color are employed in petrochemical jobs, they are mostly working in the “lowest of the low-paying” positions. The authors of the study, which was published in the journal Ecological Economics on...

An immigration judge in Louisiana ruled Friday the Trump administration can deport Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist who served as a negotiator on behalf of his classmates at Columbia University with the school administration. Assistant Chief Immigration Judge Jamee Comans gave Khalil’s lawyers until April 23 to seek a waiver, they said in a press release after the hearing. “I would like to quote what you said last time that there’s nothing that’s more important to this court than due process rights and fundamental fairness,” Khalil addressed the court at...

JENA– A Louisiana immigration judge on Tuesday gave the Trump administration a little more than 24 hours to turn over evidence it says it has against Mahmoud Khalil, the former Columbia University graduate student it is trying to deport over his pro-Palestinian activism. Judge Jamee Comans said she will then rule on Friday whether the 30-year-old legal permanent resident can be deported or he must be freed. If the government's evidence doesn't support Khalil's deportation, she said, she will "terminate" the case against him. "If he's not removable, I don't...

This story was produced for StudentNation, a program of the Nation Fund for Independent Journalism , which is dedicated to highlighting the best of student journalism. For more Student Nation, check out our archive or learn more about the program here . StudentNation is made possible through generous funding from The Puffin Foundation . If you’re a student and you have an article idea, please send pitches and questions to . The day after Momodou Taal reported “unidentified” law enforcement outside his home, a small cluster of supporters gathered on...

A pro-life activist was punched in the face on Thursday in New York City during a street interview gone horribly wrong. A video clip captured pro-life influencer Savannah Craven Antao getting hit in the face by her interview subject while asking her questions about abortion and unborn children. Footage of the aftermath of the assault revealed Antao cut and bloodied by the altercation that she had while doing the segment for the pro-life advocacy organization Live Action. CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE The organization shared 15...

The pressure campaign on Match Group continues. Activist investor Anson Funds Management said Friday it has nominated Fumbi Chima, Laura Lee and Kelley Morrell for election at the online dating company's annual shareholder meeting. Anson, one of three known activists with a stake in Match, in a letter to the company's shareholders said while there is a way for Match to grow through a better product, its long-term underperformance was a product of poor corporate governance and board oversight. "We believe Match's outdated, insular board with deep interlockings is inadequately...

Another activist judge has blocked the Trump administration from carrying out its mandate - this time, regarding a plan to lift protections from deportation for more than 600,000 Venezuelans. In his order to temporarily pause DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's plan, California-based US District Judge Edward Chen, an Obama appointee, said the move "smacks of racism." According to Chen's 78-page order, the government did not follow proper procedures for stripping Temporary Protected Status (TPS) from potential deportees.

Actor and director Anthony Edwards, known for his roles in the long-running dramatic series “ER” and the film “Top Gun,” will address the impact of child sexual abuse as the keynote speaker at the upcoming Children’s Advocacy Center’s Champions for Children Breakfast on April 9 at the Fleur De Lis Event Center in Mandeville. Edwards travels to universities, military bases and beyond to raise awareness about the impact of sexual abuse on male survivors. In 2017, Edwards disclosed that, as a child, he and his friends had been sexually assaulted...

For Michigan City residents, the NIPSCO generation station is an ever-present reality, said Ashley Williams, executive director of Just Transition Northwest Indiana. “It’s part of my life in every way,” Williams, who is also a Michigan City resident, said. “And to think that site potentially could be retained for fossil fuel use, for that plant to stay, continuing to burn fossil fuels, is really heartbreaking for me.” Nancy Moldenhauer, Michigan City councilwoman and president of Save the Dunes, said residents “don’t appreciate being polluted on.” “This is an area that...