Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us.

Because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Ziegler Foundation and the Ziegler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is an historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana.

And the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

With support from viewers like you.

Visually impaired employees look great on paper as they earn a paycheck and help a company prosper.

Louisiana's so-called Cancer Alley contends with the latest toxic emissions legal tussle here from a medical doctor about what's at stake for public health and a revamped museum, once part of a national leprosy team, chronicles the medical miracles and bittersweet memories of life at Carville.

Let's get started.

With.

Hello, everyone, I'm Karen Laidlaw.

Much more on those top stories in a moment on this week's edition of Louisiana, the State we're In.

But first, at the height of summer, many unhoused people in the Lafayette area may lose access to a safe haven and respite from the extreme heat.

Governor Jeff Landry vetoed $1 million in funding for the region's largest homeless shelter, operated by Catholic Charities of Acadiana.

In a statement, the governor said, quote, part of Catholic Charities mission is to support the influx of illegal aliens into our country.

He continued by saying that taxpayers should not foot the bill for nonprofits that help immigrants and refugees.

The shelter houses around 400 people each year, 90% of whom are Louisiana residents.

It does provide some legal services for immigrants who are seeking citizenship or access to jobs.

Lafayette Bishop J. Douglas Jeff Little responded to the governor's cut, saying, quote, somehow he leaves the fact that we take care of the homeless and feed the hungry as being that we are aiding and abetting illegal immigration or illegal immigrants.

End quote.

From hashtags to headlines, here's what's trending this week.

Former New Orleans Saints Steve Gleason moved many people to tears with his speech at Thursday night's SB Award.

If we can courageously share our fears and limitations with each other and compassionately collaborate to solve problems, our human potential is boundless.

If we can listen, understand and help alleviate each other's suffering, then truly all things are possible.

Gleason was joined on stage by his son, rivers, as he received the Arthur Ashe Award for courage.

He's been, of course, battling ALS since 2011 and continues to advocate for patients and push for new technology to help them communicate well.

Sticking with sports.

Former LSU pitcher Paul Gaines is making history in the major leagues.

Schemes celebrated in the locker room when he found out he was picked for the National League all star team.

This makes the Pittsburgh Pirates star the first player in the league history to be picked number one overall in the draft, then land an all star spot in the following year.

Skins is also the only former LSU player in this year's all star game.

Skins girlfriend A celebrity athlete in her own right, Libby Dunn is sticking with LSU gymnastics for a fifth and final season.

She posted on Instagram saying there is just something about LSU and Tiger fans that makes her want to stick around off the mat.

Dunn is a social media superstar with more than 13 million followers.

She also has the second highest name, image, likeness valuation of any collegiate athlete.

Moving on, artwork from six Louisiana high schoolers is on display in the U.S. Capitol in D.C.. Each representative in Congress selects one piece of art from a student in their district.

Some of the art focuses on traditional Louisiana imagery, like Mardi Gras or our iconic foods.

Now they're all displayed in the tunnel that links the representative's offices to the House chamber.

A big congratulations to these six incredibly talented winners.

And other good news.

The Louisiana Association for the Blind in Shreveport owns and operates the largest producer of copy paper in the state.

Nearly half of the employees at copy paper are visually impaired, bringing unique abilities to the job that have made the nonprofit's for profit company a success story.

Copy paper in Shreveport produces more than 14 million pounds of paper a year.

It's a commercial success story powered by visually impaired employees.

I was born with, I call myself Alvin, bro.

Born blind.

I had vision, and then, about 40 years ago, I lost all of me.

So I've been totally blind for two years.

And how long have you worked here?

Almost 20 years.

And tell me what you do.

do a little.

Everything.

But right now, working in warehouse is one of my grays that comes in.

And so I can make my own living and, you know, just to have something to do that I can say that I did.

You know, it's not a handout.

Gary Smith is one of 20 visually impaired employees working at copy paper on one of four production lines, alongside Sandra Galloway.

She's blind and uses her sense of touch to inspect copy paper packaging.

inspect the packages to make sure their labels.

They have no chairs that the glue is on and keeps everything looking nice and neat.

And how do you feel coming to work every day?

I love it.

I absolutely.

It gives me something to look forward to before I just have an idea what I could do in life.

And if it's not for places like copy paper, we really wouldn't have a lot to do in the community.

And to feel a part of the community is is grand, because we're already considered.

Some of us feel like we're outsiders.

Roy Sanchez lost his sight to retinitis pigmentosa.

He works in the warehouse stocked with 22,000 cases of copy paper.

I like to be spectacle and live in the boxes and just waking up every day coming to work.

It's just a great feeling.

And talking to people and getting to know different people.

You know, it's something about going to work.

It's just different from just staying at home.

Louisiana Association for the blind owns and operates Copy Paper, the largest producer of copy paper in the state of Louisiana.

So we've been around since 1927, almost 100 years.

And we started out making brooms and Easter baskets and providing services for the visually impaired in our community.

And since then, we have grown into a multidimensional powerhouse of manufacturing where we work with, employ and provide services for the visually impaired.

The federal government is copy Paper's best customer purchasing paper through its Ability One program, a government procurement program that provides employment for people with visual impairments or disabilities.

Working with nonprofit agencies.

We, start with you, drawls way about 3,200 pound.

put it through our sliding machines.

We have three solid in four ways to use least 6 or 7, blind employees per line.

We have to keep a blind sided employee ratio.

On an average year, we'll go through about 14 million pounds of paper.

So that is, on average, we do about 25 truckloads of paper a month.

And you figure that's about 42,000 pound truckload.

So we do a lot of business.

Most of our business is government.

But we do some in the local economy also.

Copy paper could serve as a case study on how altruism and commercialism can coexist to create profit and purpose.

The company capitalizes on the super powers of the visually impaired.

We use our hearing.

We use our hands, which are our eyes and our ears, to inspect and do our job.

Submission.

I've got a connection with each one of them.

I know their stories, and everything.

And it's a great place to work.

There's, you know, the benefits are great, a is good.

And the biggest thing is we give our brand employees a place to come and feel that they're part of society.

It's camaraderie.

they get to come up here and they get to be a part of something, and they get to be around people that have certain similar condition to them, and they get to communicate and talk and work and be proud to be part of the community and be a part of doing something that is productive.

That's all right.

And for Gary, earning a paycheck and taking pride in a job well done makes for a full life and something to sing about.

I hear you moonlight.

You actually you sing.

So how about to wrap up this interview by serenading us?

All right, I try to we do a little B.B.

King, Big Boss man.

Can you hear me when I call big balls, man, can you hear me when I call?

Said you ain't so me.

You just want that song.

That's all y'all.

Today we debut a special edition of Louisiana Speaks.

Throughout the month of July, we'll focus on important health issues confronting Louisiana.

We're calling it Life Pulse.

And each week, we'll be joined by medical doctor Ronnie Whitfield to share his insight and expertise.

This week, our focus is on Cancer Alley, as some of Louisiana's leaders, including Governor Jeff Landry, are again siding with the state's chemical industry in a fight over highly dangerous chemical emissions.

In a press conference, the governor accused President Biden and the EPA of risking jobs by implementing stricter rules on the release of cancer causing carcinogens.

All of this comes as new scientific research indicates that health risks to people living in so-called cancer alley are more severe than previously known.

Doctor Whitfield shares his views on the potential implications to public health.

In this episode of Life Pulse, we turn our attention to Cancer Alley, which is back in the news.

I'm joined by Doctor Ronnie Whitfield, aka hip hop doc so social media sensation, medical expert, Cancer alley.

So Doctor Ronnie, recently we've seen headlines that number one, a study released by Johns Hopkins University, found that toxic emissions levels in Cancer Alley are much higher than EPA's original estimates and monitoring stats.

Governor Jeff Landry held a press conference essentially pushing back on an EPA rule that was supposed to take effect July 15th, asking the Dinka petrochemical plant to reduce its toxic emissions.

Governor Landry saying, no, I want to give the petrochemical plant more time.

Cancer alley back in the news.

Let's start with the first question for the uninitiated.

What is Cancer Alley?

Cancer alley is a 85 mile stretch from Baton Rouge to New Orleans and New Orleans.

The Baton Rouge having one look at it that is densely populated with petrochemical companies, some parishes more than others.

And so in that area, there's been reports of those of cancer in the citizens that live there 50 times higher than other places around and around the country.

In a Johns Hopkins study, maybe more.

And so it's a huge concern for physicians, especially those that live in those areas, because some of those folks don't have access to health care.

And so we have high rates of cancer.

some people think that it's a myth.

but as you said, the studies have proven different.

So we have data and data doesn't lie.

There's a tumor registry.

What?

What does the data show?

The data shows.

Well, interestingly, a couple of years ago, the tumor registry was only compiling data at the hospital.

And not just saying that this was the particular zip code or area where that person came from.

It had the potential cancer.

And so the data is not really adding up, but we do have data that shows that individuals that lived in what we call cancer alley are dying from cancers and having respiratory problems as well.

COPD and asthma, other potentially related health disorders.

So, the tumor registry is it's kind of a it's a catch 22 because we don't have information from the area per se.

But we do know that people that live in that area.

And if you talk to the individuals that live in Cancer Alley in Saint James, payers will tell you that there's 137 people in my street who died from cancer.

So we need to find a way to, to to make those, those, those, those streets meet up.

So when we talk about toxic emissions, what are some of the pollutants in the air in cancer alley that that's creating and perpetuating this disease?

There are known carcinogens that are being produced from these these petrochemicals and these these refineries.

Benzene, for core plane, which comes from the Dinka plant.

And I think they're the largest producer in the country right there in, in the river parishes.

ethylene oxide, formaldehyde, all known carcinogens that have been found.

As you get closer to the plant, those levels increase in the water, in the soil and in the air.

And so they're putting out communities, and those young people are at risk.

And some are saying that a young child who's lived in that area for two years is getting a lifetime exposure in two years, of those chemicals.

So their increased risk of cancer as well, in that, in that population.

Well, without politicizing the recent news headlines, what is your what is your honest reaction as a medical doctor to this news?

Giving a Dinka petrochemical plant more time to reduce its emissions.

The Johns Hopkins study that found that toxic, emission levels are much higher than EPA's own estimates.

I'm fearful.

I'm very concerned about those folks that live in the community.

Some of the individuals in that area are unable to move, but some refuse to move because they love where they live.

That's their community, and they want to fight to make things better for themselves, their children and other generations to come to.

What can these individuals do that live in Cancer Alley?

What can they do to improve their health outcomes given the environment in which they're living?

They're doing it.

if you if you Google Cancer Alley, you will see tons of activists raising awareness, getting the message out, you know, from fighting in New Orleans to going to to Congress to try to make changes.

but I think it's incumbent upon physicians, the researchers, that there's been a great study that came out of Tulane that also supported the data.

we have to stay on it and make sure that we continue to raise awareness and raise the alarm.

the decision to to allow the data to continue going on.

And though the governor may have his reasons for.

But the medical reasons suggest differently that we need to be kind of pausing on what they're doing in controlling the emissions that are coming from the from the chemical plant.

And as a doctor, what can we do to perfect the data collection so that we have a much more accurate picture of what's happening?

It's got to be a marriage between physicians, the tumor registry, and we have to find better ways to collect that and share them with them.

There's tons of great research, facilities in our community that can help do that as well.

And at the policy level, your thoughts?

Congress has to get involved.

from the from the state level on up to to the white House.

They have to get involved.

You're talking about an area that potentially has the highest cancer rates in the country.

and again, you talk to the individuals that live there, they'll tell you about the hundreds of folks that have died or been affected by cancer.

this is real, in my opinion, and I think it needs to be addressed.

All right, Doctor Ronnie, final thoughts before we go.

praying for those in Cancer Alley.

And, hopefully we're doing our part here to raise more awareness.

All right.

Thank you so much, doctor Ronnie Whittle.

aka hip hop doctor, medical expert.

Thank you for joining us here on Live Pulse.

In our follow up file, we bring you an update on the City of Saint George and a recent Louisiana Speaks interview with the city's first mayor, Dustin Yates.

He spoke of plans to privatize the city's services.

Now, city officials have scheduled a December vote to secure funding.

Residents will decide whether to approve the transfer of roughly $50 million annually from East Baton Rouge Parish to Saint George's coffers.

If approved, the money will allow the new city's government to begin locking in basic city services.

And now on to a fascinating Louisiana history lesson along the River road linking antebellum homes in South Louisiana sits an outlier, a plantation that served as a medical prison for people with leprosy.

The former Gillis Long Hansen's Disease Center holds a bittersweet chapter in Louisiana's history as ground zero in the fight to cure a disease known as the biblical scourge.

I'm taking you on a tour of the National Hansen's Disease Museum, which recently opened again after renovations.

Woodlawn plantation, known as Indian Camp Plantation, sits on a bend along the Mississippi River.

Today, the Louisiana National Guard operates out of the estate that once anchored a national hospital for leprosy.

The neighboring museum tells the story of hundreds of patients quarantined there, and the medical breakthrough that freed them from forced exile.

Hi.

Hank here.

And welcome to the National Hansen's Disease Museum.

Thank you.

For more than a century, hundreds of patients diagnosed with leprosy lived at the Gillis Long Hansen's Disease Center.

Locals refer to the leprosy as Carville, named after the nearby town.

Because we had no treatment.

It was once you got it, you had to deal with it for the rest of your life.

And by law, in Louisiana, you had to be, assigned to the hospital for quarantine here for indeterminate length of time.

And some people lived out their whole lives here.

Some people do that.

Now, some people did get in to test negative for my ray, which is the causative agent.

It's a bacillus that was identified under the microscope in the mid 19th century by a doctor named Hansen.

And that's how later on, the disease term changed from leprosy to Hansen's disease.

Elizabeth Shake Snyder is the museum curator and a Carville historian.

This story of how and why Louisiana operated a national leprosy dream begins in New Orleans, where a medical board decided to send the city's lepers to live at the abandoned estate.

Our first patients arrived in 1894.

Well, for the first year and a half, they had to fend for themselves.

And the reason behind that was they couldn't attract any doctor to live here full time.

Hey, charity hospital is is staffed by nurses from the daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul.

Let's ask them to come and care for the patient.

And they did.

And it worked.

So in 1896, her first four sisters arrived and the order remained on site, caring for patients.

24 over seven until 2005.

The Federal Museum is open free of charge, with guided tours available upon request.

Exhibits take you through the history and the reality of life at Carville.

This exhibit shows you, more or less, the furnishings from a patient's room that would date to the 1940s.

The government provided all of the essentials a bed, chair, desk, anything a patient needed.

The government tried to provide it, even down to the spans.

We were not air conditioned until the late 1960s.

Carville grew to become a 360 acre self-sustaining community.

It had to, because most of the outside world was fearful of contracting leprosy.

We had our own water treatment center.

We made our own electricity.

We had our own cemetery.

We even had a lake for recreation from boating and fishing.

The patients ran their own little kind of five and dime in the recreation building.

Now they got three meals a day in the cafeteria.

But the patients ran the canteen, and they benefited indigent patients.

We had one whole dormitory building dedicated to patient enterprises.

It was called the Carville morgue.

Carville also imposed its own law and order.

By law, if you left the hospital grounds without a medical pass, you could be put in jail.

These shackles were worn by a patient, and he was delivered to the gate by the sheriff.

So there was a repeat rash of patients running away during Mardi Gras season.

And they go to New Orleans and then come back and pay the consequences.

Pay the consequences?

The consequences were 30 days in jail.

Residents cultivated a thriving sports and social scene with an annual Mardi Gras celebration and a championship softball team.

Carville also published an award winning newspaper, The Star.

I think in its heyday it had over 80,000 subscriptions.

It went around the world.

It's also the cornerstone of a lot of the research that we do today.

It's all digital and online.

You.

The US Public Health Service took operational control of the hospital in 1921.

The nuns remained caring for patients as nurses, researchers, pharmacists and other medical professionals with doctors and staff.

Exhibits chronicle advancements in research and treatment of the disease, which causes nerve damage, especially to the hands and feet.

It was the discovery of cell phone drugs that eventually freed patients from medical quarantine.

So, Elizabeth, we hear the quote unquote miracle at Carville.

What was the miracle of Carville?

this is exactly where I tell you what it is.

It was in the 1940s, a doctor who became our medical officer in charge.

Doctor gave.

He was keeping track of the advances in TB, and he realized there was drugs being used for tuberculosis that he thought could be helpful in the treatment of leprosy.

So we asked for patients who might want to try volunteer for the drug trials.

And he got ten.

And so they started the drug trials.

And within six months, patients began to look better and feel better.

And then it became the miracle at Carville.

In the 1980s, Carville officially became an outpatient treatment facility for Hansen's disease.

Some of Carville original residents chose to live out their final years on the property.

In 1999, the US Public Health Service transferred Carville back to Louisiana.

Today, hundreds of patients are buried at Carville, many under aliases.

So the museum has a database to help visitors locate their loved ones.

That might stress not everyone chose to take an alias.

But we photographed each headstone and made a database with all of the names.

Patient ID numbers, and death dates.

We have over 1000 burials on site.

Grave sites are on view in a self-guided driving tour of the property, along with other points of interest.

Louisiana continues to lead in handsome disease research, with a national program headquartered at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.

Here's a surprising fact.

Not a single person who worked at Carville, nor treated patients with Hansen's disease has ever contracted the disease.

Hansen's disease is believed to be genetically linked, meaning that certain people have a susceptibility to it and others have a natural immunity to it.

That's our show for this week.

Remember, you can watch anything LPB anytime, wherever you are with our LPB app.

And you can catch LPB news and public affairs shows, as well as other Louisiana programs you've come to enjoy over the years.

And please like us on Facebook and Instagram!

For everyone at Louisiana Public Broadcasting, I'm Karen LeBlanc.

Until next time.

That's the state we're in.

Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us.

Because together, we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Zigler Foundation and the Ziegler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is an historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana.

And by Visit Baton Rouge.

And the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana public Broadcasting and viewers like you.

Thank you.