At least five of the international students and researchers arrested since the start of the second Trump administration have been sent to Louisiana detention facilities. Lawmakers from the state aren’t sure why, although some said they have theories.
“I have my suspicions,” Rep. Troy Carter, a Democrat who represents New Orleans, told NOTUS. “I think it may be because we have a Republican governor who’s very fond of our president, but I don’t know the answer.”
Louisiana, which has nine Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers, has become a central site in President Donald Trump’s crackdown on students. Four students and former students are detained in Louisiana facilities, according to news reports. (ICE’s detainee tracker confirms that people by these names are in the detention centers.)