cross-posted from: https://piefed.ca/post/143894

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cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/14218661

The agreement, reached under the Biden Administration, required the state’s Department of Public Health to improve sanitation efforts in Alabama’s Black Belt. It’s unclear what the termination will mean on the ground.

An Alabama grand jury has recommended that a city's police department be "immediately abolished," finding there is a "rampant culture of corruption," officials said Wednesday while announcing the indictment of five of the agency's officers, including its police chief.

Five Hanceville police officers were arrested and charged amid a probe into the department, Cullman County District Attorney Champ Crocker said. The spouse of one of the officers was also charged, he said.

Cody Alan Kelso, Jason Scott Wilbanks, Jason Shane Marlin, William Andrew Shelnutt, and Eric Michael Kelso are shown in these booking photos released by the Cullman County Sheriff's Office.

Summary

Alabama and Mississippi commemorate Robert E. Lee Day alongside Martin Luther King Jr. Day on the same day, reflecting a long-standing juxtaposition of contrasting legacies.

Both states combined these holidays in the 1980s when King’s federal holiday was established. Black lawmakers have since unsuccessfully attempted to separate them.

Critics argue it disrespects King’s civil rights leader legacy to pair his honor with Lee, a Confederate general who fought to preserve slavery and uphold white supremacy.

Other southern states have abolished similar practices, leaving only Alabama and Mississippi with shared celebrations for King and Lee.

Summary

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) argued that California does not deserve federal aid for its deadly Los Angeles wildfires unless the state adopts changes.

In a Newsmax interview, Tuberville criticized California leadership, falsely attributing wildfire mismanagement to "inner-city woke policies."

While he expressed willingness to support some funding, he insisted it be conditional on reforms.

The wildfires have killed 24 people and destroyed thousands of homes, per the Associated Press, intensifying debates on state accountability and federal disaster relief.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/16448519

No state has a longer, more profit-driven history of contracting prisoners out to private companies than Alabama. With a sprawling labor system that dates back more than 150 years — including the brutal convict leasing era that replaced slavery — it has constructed a template for the commercialization of mass incarceration.

Most jobs are inside facilities, where the state’s inmates — who are disproportionately Black — can be sentenced to hard labor and forced to work for free doing everything from mopping floors to laundry. But more than 10,000 inmates have logged a combined 17 million work hours outside Alabama’s prison walls since 2018, for entities like city and county governments and businesses that range from major car-part manufacturers and meat-processing plants to distribution centers for major retailers like Walmart, the AP determined.

https://apnews.com/article/prison-to-plate-inmate-labor-investigation-alabama-3b2c7e414c681ba545dc1d0ad30bfaf5

Summary

Alabama profits from a vast prison labor system, earning over $250 million since 2000 by leasing incarcerated workers to private companies like McDonald’s and Home Depot.

While inmates earn at least $7.25/hour, the state deducts 40% plus additional fees, leaving many with only $100-$200 weekly.

Inmates working outside prisons face risks, including unsafe conditions and lack of oversight, leading to fatalities like a recent van crash that killed two prisoners.

Critics argue this system exploits incarcerated workers, many denied parole despite holding jobs deemed too dangerous for release.

Advocates call for fair pay, workplace rights, and reform.