World Peace

HOLDING THE WORLD’S PRISON CAPITAL RECORD

PART I

Yes or No. Is Louisiana one of the world’s prison capitals with the longest pretrial detention especially harming Black people?

GoogleAI Mode: “Yes. As of 2026, Louisiana is widely considered one of the world’s prison capitals, consistently holding the highest or second-highest incarceration rate globally. The state maintains the highest pretrial detention rate in the United States, which disproportionately affects Black residents. 

World Ranking and Incarceration Rates

Global Standing: With an incarceration rate of 1,067 per 100,000 residents, Louisiana locks up a higher percentage of its people than any independent democratic nation on earth.

National Leader: It frequently ranks first among U.S. states, with an incarceration rate nearly double the national average. 

Pretrial Detention Crisis

Longest Stays: People held pretrial in Louisiana remain behind bars for an average of 5.5 months without a trial or conviction.

Highest Rate: Louisiana has the highest pretrial incarceration rate in the nation, with nearly 49% to 57% of people in local jails held for non-violent offenses while legally innocent.

Extended Holding Laws: Louisiana is one of the few states allowing individuals to be held for up to 60 days for lower-level felonies and 120 days for capital felonies before they are even formally charged. 

Impact on Black People

Disproportionate Representation: Black residents comprise approximately 33% of Louisiana’s general population but nearly 67% of its prison population.

Racial Inequity in Detention: Black Louisianans are 2.3 times more likely to be jailed pretrial than white residents and are held in jail approximately 36% longer for similar charges.

Local Extremes: In New Orleans, the Black detention rate in 2024 was 5.4 times higher than the white rate. For young Black men (ages 15-24), the likelihood of being jailed after an arrest is 5 times higher than for white men in the same age group.”

PART II

Yes or No. Globally, is Louisiana one of the worst places for justice?

GoogleAI Mode: “Yes. As of 2026, Louisiana is consistently ranked as one of the world’s most severe jurisdictions for justice due to its global leadership in mass incarceration and systemic pretrial delays. 

Global Incarceration Leadership

Highest Rate Globally: Louisiana has an incarceration rate of 1,067 per 100,000 residents, the highest in the world when compared to independent democratic nations.

Scale of Imprisonment: The state locks up its citizens at nearly twice the national U.S. average and several times the rate of other large countries such as Brazil and China. 

Pretrial Detention and Racial Inequity

Extreme Delays: Individuals are held pretrial for an average of 5.5 months without a conviction, the longest such duration on record in the United States.

Racial Harm: Black residents are disproportionately affected, comprising 67% of the prison population despite being only 33% of the state’s total population.

Young Black Men: Black men aged 15–24 are 5 times more likely to be jailed following an arrest than white men of the same age. 

Constitutional and Human Rights Concerns

Systemic Overdetention: Louisiana is the only U.S. jurisdiction identified by the Department of Justice for systematically holding people weeks or months past their legal release dates.

Forced Labor: The state continues to use the forced labor of incarcerated people, often under armed guard, on former slave plantations—a practice widely condemned by international human rights observers.

Judicial “Hellhole” Status: Beyond criminal justice, Louisiana is frequently ranked as one of the worst “judicial hellholes” in the U.S. for its civil legal climate and excessive litigation.”

IHRL VIOLATIONS

What are Louisiana’s IHRL violations?

GoogleAI Mode: “As of 2026, Louisiana’s carceral system has been identified by civil rights organizations and international bodies as violating several International Human Rights Law (IHRL) standards. These violations primarily concern arbitrary detention, systemic racial discrimination, and inhumane conditions of confinement.

1. Arbitrary and Prolonged Detention

Louisiana’s practices frequently violate the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which prohibits arbitrary arrest or detention (Article 9). 

Systemic Overdetention: A 2023–2025 U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation found that the Louisiana Department of Corrections (LDOC) routinely holds people weeks or months past their legal release dates, a practice deemed “deliberately indifferent” to constitutional rights.

Excessive Pretrial Duration: People are held pretrial for an average of 5.5 months without conviction. Louisiana law allows prosecutors up to 60 days for felonies and 120 days for capital crimes before even filing formal charges, violating the right to be tried “within a reasonable time”. 

2. Systemic Racial Discrimination

Louisiana’s incarceration rates violate international prohibitions against racial discrimination (ICERD).

Disproportionate Impact: Black residents are jailed pretrial at more than twice the rate of white residents.

Juvenile Disparities: Black boys and young men (ages 15–24) are five times more likely to be jailed after arrest than their white counterparts.

Immigrant Detention: Reports to the UN International Independent Expert Mechanism in 2025 documented systemic human rights abuses against Black noncitizens in Louisiana detention centers, citing racial discrimination as a tool for exclusion. 

3. Inhumane Conditions and Torture

Conditions in Louisiana facilities often fall below the “Mandela Rules” for the treatment of prisoners.

Cruel and Unusual Punishment: Federal courts have ruled that medical care at Angola (Louisiana State Penitentiary) is so deficient it violates the Eighth Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment), which aligns with IHRL prohibitions on inhumane treatment.

“Detention Alley”: Immigrant detention centers in Louisiana have been accused of using solitary confinement, medical neglect, and deprivation of basic human necessities (potable water, nutritious food) in ways that meet the definition of torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. 

4. Denial of Due Process and Legal Counsel

Post-Conviction Barriers: New 2025 laws (e.g., HB 675) restrict prisoners’ ability to file for post-conviction relief, effectively requiring active litigation at all times or risking the abandonment of their claims.

Isolation from Counsel: Facilities in remote “carceral corridors” often deprive detainees of access to legal counsel and language interpretation services.”

CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS

What are Louisiana’s constitutional violations?

GoogleAI Mode: “As of 2026, Louisiana faces multiple major constitutional challenges and federal lawsuits regarding its carceral and legal systems. These center primarily on violations of the Fourteenth, Eighth, and First Amendments. 

1. Due Process and Overdetention (14th Amendment)

A primary constitutional violation in Louisiana is “overdetention”—holding incarcerated individuals weeks or months past their legal release dates. 

Systemic Failure: A Department of Justice (DOJ) lawsuit, active as of 2026, alleges that the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections (LDOC) is “deliberately indifferent” to this systemic issue.

Scale: Investigations found that roughly 27% of people released from state custody were held past their legal dates, with 24% of those held for at least 90 days extra.

Class Action: In September 2025, a federal judge granted class action status to lawsuits (e.g., Giroir v. LeBlanc), allowing thousands of formerly overdetained individuals to sue the state for these violations. 

2. Cruel and Unusual Punishment (8th Amendment)

Louisiana facilities have been repeatedly cited for conditions that violate the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. 

Medical Neglect: Federal courts have ruled that medical care at the 

Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola)

 is constitutionally deficient. One 2024 ruling highlighted cases where inmates suffered permanent injury, such as a finger amputation, due to lack of basic medical intervention.

Mental Health and Isolation: In north Louisiana, a federal judge ruled that conditions at the 

David Wade Correctional Center

 constituted “mental torture” due to social isolation and inadequate mental healthcare.

Environmental Hazards: A 2025 ACLU lawsuit alleges that immigrant detainees at a state-run facility were subjected to inhumane conditions, including foul water and deprivation of necessities. 

3. Religious Freedom and Privacy (1st Amendment & Right to Privacy)

Religious Practice: The Supreme Court heard arguments in late 2025 regarding Louisiana prison officials who violated an inmate’s religious beliefs by shaving his dreadlocks in 2020.

Privacy Rights: The Louisiana Supreme Court has recognized a unique state constitutional right to damages for injuries suffered when state agents violate an individual’s right to privacy. 

4. Voting Rights and Equal Protection (14th & 15th Amendments)

Louisiana’s electoral system is under intense scrutiny for potential violations related to racial discrimination. 

Redistricting Dispute: As of early 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing whether Louisiana’s creation of a second majority-Black congressional district violates the 14th or 15th Amendments, or if failing to create it violates the Voting Rights Act.

Judicial Structure: Critics argue that proposed 2025 constitutional amendments to create “specialty courts” with appointed magistrates could further erode due process for those facing probation violations or claims of innocence. 

AI responses may include mistakes. For legal advice, consult a professional.”

LOUISIANA VS. CHINA: WHO JAILS MORE?

Louisiana jails more people than China?

GoogleAI Mode: “As of 2026, Louisiana continues to incarcerate its residents at a significantly higher rate than China. While China has a larger total number of people in prison due to its massive population, Louisiana’s per capita incarceration rate is roughly seven to thirteen times higher. 

Per Capita Comparison

Louisiana: The state’s incarceration rate is approximately 1,067 per 100,000 residents.

China: China’s estimated incarceration rate is approximately 119 to 165 per 100,000 people.

Ranking: If Louisiana were its own country, it would have the second-highest incarceration rate in the world, surpassed only by El Salvador. 

Total Prison Population

Louisiana: Roughly 28,000 to 32,000 individuals are currently incarcerated in state prisons.

China: China has an estimated 1.7 to 2 million people in prison, the highest total number globally. 

Pretrial and Racial Context

Pretrial Incarceration: Unlike China, where data on pretrial detention is often opaque, Louisiana is documented as having the highest pretrial incarceration rate in the U.S.. Nearly 49% of people in Louisiana jails are legally innocent, held without a conviction.

Racial Impact: Black residents in Louisiana are incarcerated at a rate nearly double their representation in the general population; one in 20 Black adult males in the state is currently behind bars.”

THE SOLUTIONS: PART I

What are the 5/5 solutions to bring Louisiana in compliance with IHRL and the Constitution?

GoogleAI Mode: “Bringing Louisiana’s justice system into compliance with International Human Rights Law (IHRL) and the U.S. Constitution requires comprehensive reform focused on reducing incarceration, eliminating racial disparities, improving conditions of confinement, and ensuring due process.

Here are five key solutions recommended by legal experts and human rights organizations:

Reform Pretrial Incarceration and Eliminate Cash Bail: Implement policies that prioritize release based on public safety risk, not the ability to pay bail.

Action: Enact comprehensive bail reform to end the jailing of people solely because they are poor.

Action: Shorten the maximum time law enforcement can hold individuals without formal charges to prevent prolonged, arbitrary detention.

Address Systemic Racial Disparities: Implement an anti-racist framework across the justice system to end the disproportionate impact on Black communities.

Action: Repeal mandatory minimum sentencing laws that rely on discriminatory policing patterns.

Action: Investigate and litigate cases of police misconduct and racial bias in arrests and sentencing.

Improve Conditions of Confinement and Medical Care: Ensure all incarcerated individuals receive humane treatment, access to adequate medical and mental health care, and clean water, as guaranteed by the 8th Amendment and the “Mandela Rules”.

Action: Increase funding for medical and mental health services in all state and local facilities, ensuring care is administered by licensed professionals.

Action: Reduce the use of solitary confinement and address facility overcrowding, which contributes to violence and understaffing.

Expand Post-Conviction Relief and Reentry Pathways: Strengthen opportunities for legal review and successful reintegration into society, rather than creating new barriers to release.

Action: Reverse regressive “truth-in-sentencing” laws and restore meaningful parole eligibility and discretionary parole for most offenses.

Action: Expand access to job training, education, and professional licensing for returning citizens, while eliminating punitive fines and fees that hinder successful reentry.

Reinvest in Communities and Alternatives to Incarceration: Divert resources from the carceral system into preventative and rehabilitative programs that address root causes of crime.

Action: Fund community violence intervention (CVI) programs, substance abuse treatment, and community-based mental health services.

Action: Authorize civilian responses to non-violent 911 calls (e.g., mental health crises, low-level traffic violations) to reduce unnecessary arrests.

AI responses may include mistakes. For legal advice, consult a professional.”

LOUISIANA: A SLAVE STATE IN 2026 (PART I)

Is Louisiana using the 13 Amendment in a way that reminds of slavery?

GoogleAI Mode: “Yes. As of 2026, Louisiana is frequently cited by civil rights advocates, legal scholars, and international observers for using the “punishment clause” of the 13th Amendment to maintain a labor system that directly mirrors antebellum slavery. 

This comparison is based on the following documented practices:

1. Historical Continuity (The “Plantation-to-Prison” Pipeline)

Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola): The state’s largest prison is situated on 18,000 acres of land that was once a patchwork of slave plantations.

Agricultural Labor: Incarcerated individuals, who are disproportionately Black (74% at Angola), are still forced to work the same soil to harvest crops like cotton, sugarcane, and corn.

The “Farm Line”: Detainees are forced to labor in fields—often stooping over crops for hours in extreme heat—while monitored by armed guards on horseback. 

2. Exploitative Labor Practices

Forced and Unpaid Labor: Under the 13th Amendment’s exception for “punishment for crime,” Louisiana mandates labor that is often unpaid or pays as little as $0.02 to $0.20 per hour.

Coercion and Punishment: Those who refuse to work face severe disciplinary consequences, including loss of family visitation, denial of parole, or placement in solitary confinement.

Lack of Protections: Incarcerated workers are excluded from standard labor protections, such as minimum wage, maximum working hours, and workplace safety laws. 

3. Failed Constitutional Reform

Ballot Measure (2022): Louisiana was the only state in the 2022 midterm elections where voters rejected an amendment to ban slavery and involuntary servitude.

Ambiguous Language: The measure failed after its own sponsor urged voters to reject it, arguing the final wording—which prohibited slavery except for “lawful administration of criminal justice”—potentially permitted the practice to continue. 

4. Recent Legal Challenges (2024–2026)

Class Action Lawsuits: As of January 2026, a federal judge has allowed a class action lawsuit to proceed challenging the “inhumane” and “dangerous” conditions of Angola’s farm line.

Eighth Amendment Claims: Plaintiffs argue the forced labor in sweltering heat without adequate hydration or rest constitutes “cruel and unusual punishment”.

Due Process Arguments: Some lawsuits contend that individuals sentenced by non-unanimous juries were not “duly convicted” and thus cannot be legally subjected to forced labor under the 13th Amendment.”

THE SOLUTIONS: PART II

What are the solutions?

GoogleAI Mode: “Bringing Louisiana into compliance with international human rights law (IHRL) and the Constitution requires a comprehensive approach focused on reducing incarceration, eliminating racial bias, ensuring humane conditions, and prioritizing community support.

Here are five key solutions recommended by legal experts and human rights organizations:

Reform Pretrial Incarceration and End Cash Bail: Implement policies that prioritize release based on public safety risk, not financial means, which would help end the practice of jailing people simply because they are poor. This includes limiting the amount of time individuals can be held without formal charges to prevent prolonged, arbitrary detention.

Address Systemic Racial Disparities: Implement an anti-racist framework across the justice system to end the disproportionate impact on Black communities. This includes repealing mandatory minimum sentences, which disproportionately affect Black and Brown individuals, and ensuring greater accountability and transparency in law enforcement to address bias in arrests and sentencing.

Improve Conditions and Access to Healthcare: Ensure all incarcerated individuals receive humane treatment and access to adequate medical and mental health care, as guaranteed by the Eighth Amendment and IHRL standards. This requires increasing funding for facility healthcare, reducing the use of solitary confinement (which has been condemned as a form of torture), and addressing dangerous environmental conditions in facilities.

Expand Post-Conviction Relief and Reentry Pathways: Strengthen opportunities for legal review and successful reintegration into society by reversing regressive laws that create barriers to release. Solutions include restoring meaningful parole eligibility, expanding “good time” credits, and providing access to job training, education, and professional licensing for returning citizens.

Reinvest in Communities and Alternatives to Incarceration: Divert resources from the carceral system into preventative and rehabilitative programs that address root causes of crime, such as poverty, mental illness, and substance use disorders. This involves funding community violence intervention programs, expanding drug courts and diversion programs, and authorizing civilian-led responses for non-violent emergency calls (e.g., mental health crises).”

LOUISIANA: A SLAVE STATE IN 2026 (PART II)

How does Louisiana’s 13th Amendment usage compare to other states?

GoogleAI Mode: “As of 2026, Louisiana remains an extreme outlier among U.S. states regarding the 13th Amendment’s “punishment clause,” which permits slavery and involuntary servitude for those convicted of a crime. While several other states have moved to abolish this exception, Louisiana has actively maintained it through both its constitution and its labor practices. 

1. Constitutional Differences

The Lone Holdout: In the 2022 midterm elections, Louisiana was the only state among five on the ballot (including Alabama, Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont) where voters rejected a constitutional amendment to ban slavery as a criminal punishment.

Expanding Abolition Elsewhere: As of 2026, at least nine states (Vermont, Oregon, Alabama, Tennessee, Colorado, Nebraska, Utah, Rhode Island, and Nevada) have explicitly forbidden slavery and involuntary servitude in their state constitutions with no exceptions. Louisiana’s constitution still explicitly permits it as “punishment for a crime”.

Legislative Confusion: Louisiana’s 2022 measure failed partly because the lead sponsor urged voters to reject it at the last minute, fearing the final wording could unintentionally expand the state’s power to use forced labor. 

2. Labor and Economic Comparison

Lowest Pay Rates: While prison wages are low nationwide, Louisiana’s are among the lowest in the country. Incarcerated workers in Louisiana typically earn between $0.02 and $0.40 per hour, whereas the average in other state prisons is roughly $0.20 to $0.70 per hour.

Forced Agricultural Labor: Louisiana is unique in the scale and visibility of its forced field labor. At the Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola), which sits on former plantation land, prisoners—who are roughly 74% Black—are forced to harvest crops like cotton and corn under the supervision of armed guards on horseback.

Essential State Labor: Unlike states that have transitioned to voluntary or vocational labor programs, Louisiana relies on forced labor to maintain essential public services, including cleaning government buildings and cooking meals at the state Capitol. 

3. Judicial and Legal Enforcement

Punishment for Refusal: In Louisiana, refusing to work can lead to severe disciplinary actions, such as loss of family visitation or placement in solitary confinement. In states like Colorado, the removal of the 13th Amendment exception has been used to argue against punishing inmates for work refusal.

“Duly Convicted” Disputes: Louisiana is also the only state where the Department of Justice has sued over the systemic holding of people past their release dates, effectively extending forced servitude beyond a person’s legal sentence.”

THE SOLUTIONS: PART III

What are the solutions?

GoogleAI Mode: “To bring Louisiana into compliance with the U.S. Constitution and International Human Rights Law (IHRL) by 2026, legal experts, civil rights organizations, and international bodies have proposed five foundational solutions:

1. Abolish Forced Labor and Involuntary Servitude

To resolve the 13th Amendment controversy, Louisiana must remove the “punishment clause” that allows for modern-day slavery.

Constitutional Amendment: Pass a clear, unambiguous state constitutional amendment to ban all forms of slavery and involuntary servitude without exceptions.

Transition to Voluntary Labor: Replace forced agricultural labor (the “farm line”) with voluntary vocational programs that pay a fair wage and provide transferable skills.

2. End Systemic “Overdetention”

Louisiana is the only state currently under federal scrutiny for holding people past their legal release dates.

Automated Release Tracking: Implement a transparent, centralized computer system to calculate release dates accurately and automatically, as mandated by recent Department of Justice (DOJ) findings.

Legal Accountability: Establish a state-level “right to timely release” that allows incarcerated individuals to sue for damages immediately if held past their sentence.

3. Reform Pretrial Detention and the Bail System

To address the nation’s longest pretrial detention periods, the state must prioritize liberty for the legally innocent.

Eliminate Cash Bail for Non-Violent Offenses: Implement a system where release is based on a transparent risk assessment rather than financial status.

Mandatory Indictment Deadlines: Shorten the 60-day (felony) and 120-day (capital) windows prosecutors currently have to formally charge someone, bringing Louisiana in line with the Sixth Amendment’s right to a speedy trial.

4. Remedying Racial Disparities (Equal Protection)

The state must address the fact that Black residents are incarcerated at more than double the rate of white residents.

Repeal Multi-Bill Sentencing: End “habitual offender” laws that allow for life sentences for minor crimes, which have been proven to disproportionately target Black men.

Racial Impact Statements: Require the legislature to conduct “racial impact statements” for all new criminal justice bills to ensure they do not exacerbate existing disparities.

5. Mandate Humane Conditions (Mandela Rules Compliance)

To meet IHRL standards and the 8th Amendment, Louisiana must reform its treatment of those in custody.

Ban Extreme Solitary Confinement: Limit the use of solitary confinement to no more than 15 days, in accordance with the United Nations Nelson Mandela Rules.

Independent Medical Oversight: Create an independent, non-partisan board to oversee medical and mental health services in state prisons to stop the cycle of neglect documented at Angola and other facilities.”

PERSONAL CONNECTION: MY LOUISIANA SOLITARY CONFINEMENT JAIL TIME IN MAY 2019

As I posted before, I know Louisiana jail life from my own experience.  I am not proud of it, but I choose to be honest about it.  During my first World Peace peaceful protest, January 2017 to July 2019, ended because I was arrested for the first time in life by the State of Louisiana.

I was on a school campus with permission from a teacher to take pictures of a tiger statue for my Twitter.  After posting those pictures, I left the school.  

I was staying with a family friend for a few weeks across the street from that school.  The police crossed the street to arrest because one person reported me as an intruder.

The police were terrible to me by “man handling” me even though I did not resist arrest.  I was arrested by 3 male and 1 female cop team.  The female never touched me and she knew my relatives personally.  I addressed her several times because I did meet her at a community event before that day.  She ignored any acknowledgement of knowing me.  The officer with the most muscles was the one put in charge over me.

They continued to question me ignoring all my requests to speak to my attorney (I had a family attorney at the time through Legal Shield).  They accused me of being a foreigner because of my name and ignored when I told them that I am an American citizen.

One officer drove me around town for over 30 minutes without telling me where he was taking me.  I was terrified he was planning to do terrible things to me and I prayed to God the entire time.  I kept demanding he tell me, but he would not as I cried in the back seat. 

Afterwards, he took me to the jail house.  I was thrown in solitary confinement for the worst charges possible: terrorizing and criminal trespass based on one person’s misspelled one sentence statement.  

In her one sentence statement, she accused me of saying a “boom” would go off.  I did not find out about the charges until sometime had passed where I had to take a mugshot published in the newspaper further devastating me and my relatives (a practice that has since ended).

When I finally saw the judge among a long line of people walking in chains, he barely took two minutes before denying my bail and setting it at a high price.  It did not matter that I was never in trouble with the law before or had graduated from law school.

After almost a month in solitary confinement with one hour out per day to shower and make calls (relatives could not afford my bail), I asked my assigned public defender (who took almost a month to return my communication) to contact my law school mentor.  Within hours, my mentor paid my bail and arranged that same lawyer to drive me home upon release.  

The case is still in pre-trial with a new date to be scheduled.  We moved to Louisiana in 2017 from Oakland, California so that I can study for the BAR EXAM with the help of relatives because we had two children under 2 years old.  Instead, I am waiting for the case to resolve since my arrest on May 6, 2019.  

I had to end my World Peace protest by deleting all my social media and remaining in my home to figure out my future.  The lessons I learned were worth the horrible incarceration experience.   I now know to cherish my freedom and family.  It took me years to return to social media in March 2025.

Each assigned lawyer was not even close to a good lawyer who cares about my life.  They are all too busy because the case load is heavy.  It is almost impossible to get a meeting to prepare properly for my defense.  I am assumed guilty based on the charges.  

I returned to work for World Peace in 2025 because I figured if Louisiana is going to lock me up for 15 years, then I may as well finish what I started in 2017 before they put me away.

While solitary confinement, Louisiana refused me all my prescriptions as a severe asthmatic for over a decade except one.  Even my prescribed emergency inhaler was not allowed leaving me in constant fear of an attack behind a closed cell door with no way of immediate help.

I reflect on my time in solitary confinement often because I have learned to transform that painful experience into a valuable journey full of lessons.  I would not trade that experience to go back to the person I was before my time in jail.  

Law school was not enough to teach me about the reality of justice in America.  I had to go to jail to know and I am grateful.  The experience will make me the kind of lawyer I prayed to God to be when I get my chance.