Why is this a surprise?
Them and New Mexico were the last two states to outlaw dog fighting and cock fighting.
Old Mexico is actually better than New Mexico in many ways. Louisiana is in a class with New Mexico.
You youngsters might not recall this but for their gubernatorial election back in the late 80’s or early 90’s, their two candidates were:
Edwin Edwards, alleged crook who bragged that he had been indicted a dozen times but never convicted (until later on, along with the DeBartolo family), and who joked that Viagra was formulated using his blood samples as a design
David Duke, neo-Nazi and former grand dragon of the KKK
That was the top two candidates in their entire state that year!
My wife is from the Midwest. When she first moved here she was surprised how big football was, and she said it must be a southern thing and referenced the hilarity of The Water Boy.
I assured her that The Water Boy is a documentary, not a comedy. Every aspect of Louisiana in that film is accurate.