LSU TOPS N.C. STATE 80-73, ADVANCES TO ELITE EIGHT 1C
N O L A.C O M
|
S at u r d ay, M a r c h 29, 2025
Big time at Book Fest
$2.00X
EPA to cut $70M in funds for La. Agencies, nonprofits to lose federal grants
BY JOSIE ABUGOV
Staff writer
STAFF PHOTOS By BRETT DUKE
People make their way through the Tulane University campus during the New Orleans Book Festival on Friday.
Crowds turn out for high-profile authors, speakers BY RICH COLLINS Staff writer
The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University has earned the nickname “Mardi Gras for the Mind.” Under mostly sunny skies Friday at Tulane’s ä Dr. Anthony Uptown campus, “Disney World for Fauci talks book, career the mind” might have been the betand vaccines. ter comparison as PAGE 6A thousands of fest attendees queued up in long lines to attend talks from a roster of highprofile speakers and authors. Panelists and speakers for the first full day of the event included immunologist Anthony Fauci, journalist Connie Chung, political strategists
Broadcast journalist Connie Chung speaks during the New Orleans Book Festival on Friday. David Axelrod and Karl Rove, Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna and more. Despite the extended wait times — a side effect of the free event’s growing popularity — festgoers were in great spirits. “I’ve been hearing about the fest
for four years,” said Fay Kimbrell, who with her daughter Mia Rouse was queued up to see a presentation called “Who Is Government,” featuring comic and TV host W. Kamau Bell. “Being around engaged people all in one space is so nice.” A few feet away in the same line, returning attendee Robin DeLamatre said there’s one big difference this year. “It’s packed,” she said. “By the time we got in to see Dr. Fauci, it was half over, but we all said it was worth it to only see half.” Founded 15 years ago by former New Orleans first lady Cheryl Landrieu, Book Fest began as a small children’s book gathering at the St. Charles Avenue branch of the New Orleans Public Library. It grew
ä See BOOK FEST, page 6A
The Environmental Protection Agency is cutting about $70 million in funding for Louisiana government agencies and nonprofits, as part of a far-reaching plan to cancel hundreds of federal grants nationwide, according to internal documents released by a U.S. Senate committee. The records show that grants for air quality monitoring, disaster response and environmental education are being terminated. The move is part of an effort to curb what the Trump administration has said is excessive federal spending, and to cut support for government programs that promote diversity, equity and inclusion. Earlier this month, EPA administrator Lee Zeldin announced that the agency was canceling hundreds of grants as part of a collaborative effort with the Department of Government Efficiency, led by President Donald Trump’s billionaire adviser Elon Musk. Many of the Louisiana organizations named in a list of roughly 400 grants are decades-old environmental nonprofits, such as the Louisiana Bucket Brigade and The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice. But state agencies, such as the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, and commercial entities were also included. The feds are seeking to trim around $1 million
ä See EPA, page 7A
LSU to enact hiring freeze ‘Unpredictable, unprecedented federal funding changes’ cited BY PATRICK WALL and ELLYN COUVILLION
Staff writers
LSU will enact a universitywide hiring freeze and consider eliminating some positions as the Trump administration seeks to slash higher-education funding, LSU President William Tate IV said Friday. In a letter to faculty and staff, Tate outlined belttightening measures the public university will take in response to “unpredictable and unprecedented federal funding changes.” The school will pause hiring “with limited exceptions,” look
ABOVE: Griffin Dunne, center, signs a copy of his book during the New Orleans Book Festival on Friday. RIGHT: Fran Fransen, left, looks through books for sale during the Book Festival on Friday.
PAGE 8A
Business ......................5B Deaths .........................3B Opinion ........................6B Classified .....................5D Metro ...........................1B Sports ..........................1C Comics-Puzzles .....1D-4D Nation-World ................2A
39th Annual Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival PHOTO BY FRANK RELLE
March 26 – 30, 2025
tennesseewilliams.net
&
12TH yEAR, NO. 229
22nd Annual Saints + Sinners LGBTQ+ Literary Festival March 28 – 30, 2025
PAINTINGS BY TIMOTHY CUMMINGS
WEATHER HIGH 79 LOW 69
ä See LSU, page 3A
sasfest.org