NO KIDS IN ANGOLA
The #NoKidsinAngola campaign is a direct response to a worst-case youth justice scenario in which kids were transferred to the Louisiana State Penitentiary, known as Angola, one of America’s most notoriously inhumane adult prisons and a former plantation for enslaved Africans. It is directly tied to our #NoMorePrisons campaign, as it is an example of what happens when policymakers refuse to address root causes and reject collaborating with youth justice leaders in problem-solving.
On July 19, 2022, in reaction to multiple escapes and unrest at youth prisons, notably at Bridge City Correctional Center for Youth (BCCY), Louisiana’s Governor John Bel Edwards made a decision to move youth to Angola. The decision was, and continues to be, one of the most egregious attacks of our time against our Black and brown youth.
FFLIC immediately organized against this decision, knowing that children would be traumatized, and basic rehabilitative and educational services would be withheld.
FFLIC immediately organized against this decision, knowing that children would be traumatized, and basic rehabilitative and educational services would be withheld. FFLIC provided support to a litigation team that filed a lawsuit against the state, held multiple direct actions, launched a petition, achieved widespread media attention, elicited public statements against the move from the OJJDPand the Department of Justice, and jointly filed a request for an investigation by the Department of Education. In response to the system’s utter disregard for children’s rights and well-being, FFLIC continues to focus our demands on the large-scale holistic reforms that we know will result in improved youth outcomes.
In October 2023, a federal court judge approved the temporary transfer of children out of Angola. However, the lawsuit is still pending and children could be sent back to Angola at any time. And sadly, youth were transferred to a different adult facility where they continue to be subject to similar abuses. FFLIC still urgently needs your support to ensure that no children are remanded to any adult prison.
