Dear Louisiana Senators and Representatives:
The Greater New Orleans Interfaith Climate Coalition’s mission is to promote justice for all people and to foster the development of communities bound together in love and respect. In furtherance of this mission, I am writing to ask you to act with justice and love by ensuring that Black voters’ votes have equal weight with all other votes.
Black people make up one-third of Louisiana’s total population. You have the historic opportunity to create two out of six congressional districts where Black voters can have their voices heard in proportion to their population.
Black Louisianians have faced generations of discrimination in political representation, and you can finally chart a more hopeful direction for our State and our nation’s promise of democracy. Fair representation can lead to real change for Black Louisianians and help improve disparities in education, healthcare access, environmental safety, infrastructure, and more. The GNOICC is asking you to further these goals with just maps that represent all of Louisiana’s communities and no longer deny Black voters an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice.
We are optimistic about a future with equal representation for Louisiana voters. We are eager to see this process play out and to realize the vision of a map that represents all Louisiana voters, not just some. The time for fair maps is now.
Pastor Gregory Manning
Chair, Greater New Orleans Interfaith Climate Coalition
