The Bonnet Carré Spillway, located just west of New Orleans, was created by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1931 to divert flood waters from the Mississippi River into Lake Pontchartrain. It has been opened 15 times since it was created, with increasing frequency over time as climate change produces higher water levels. When the gates open, the brackish lake water of Lake Pontchartrain is infused with fresh water. Spillway openings correspond with a decrease in species diversity, possibly the result of reduced salinity, cyanobacterial blooms, and hypoxia/anoxia. The spillway is also the site of two cemeteries of enslaved persons of African descent and free African American peoples. These cemeteries are named the Kenner cemetery and the Kugler cemetery. When the spillway gates are opened, the cemeteries are flooded. Residents of Montz and Norco informed project administrators of the cemeteries, but, according to historian Robin McDowell, Assistant Professor of African and African American Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, there are no records of provisions for the cemeteries during construction of the spillway. What forms of epistemic injustice do you see here? 

The spillway and the cemeteries exist on the site of four 19th century sugar plantations, sites of white supremacist torture, punishment, and exploitation during the antebellum period (1789-1861) and after. By the start of the 20th century, the plantations had become the townships of Montz and Sellers. The town of Sellers was renamed “Norco” in 1934 after the arrival of the Northern Oil Refinery Company. The town of Montz was demolished in 1929 to make room for the floodplain once the construction of the Bonnet Carré Spillway began. In 1975, the opening of the spillway unearthed human remains. In 1986, the USACE commissioned archeological investigations to create an inventory of the history of the land. These investigations, led by an archaeologist, were termed “Cultural Resource Inventories” and included oral histories and interviews with residents and descendants, genealogical charts, and maps of former plantation structures. This research confirmed that the cemeteries included remains of people from the bones of enslaved persons, soldiers from the first all-Black regiment of the Union army, and free persons of color. The USACE has largely inhibited circulation of these research results. Hard copies of the study report exist in 3 locations (one of which may have been lost during Katrina). Why do you think epistemic injustice in this case continued despite efforts to create an inventory of the history of the land around the spillway?