Progress Picayune—September 29

Yesterday, we sent out a version of The Progress Picayune that included a list of endorsed candidates. That version was premature, and a corrected version of the Picayune is below. We are very sorry to you, our readers, for any confusion. If you have any comments or questions, please email us at info@louisianaprogress.org

Get Out & Early Vote 

We are officially into voting season, with Early Voting starting tomorrow, Saturday, September 30th, running through next Saturday, October 7th (except this Sunday, October 1st). And, of course, Election Day is Saturday, October 14th. But the 14th promises to be a busy day, with Southern University and Grambling both having homecoming then, and LSU set to play Auburn. So please take advantage of early voting, then relax and (hopefully) enjoy your favorite college team’s game on the 14th.

Thanking our Allies in the Legislature

In our years advocating for policies in the State Capital that uplift the people of Louisiana, we’ve had the pleasure of working with some fantastic legislators, including State Reps. Rodney Lyons and Mandie Landry.

In 2022, Rep. Lyons authored House Bill 726, which we worked on in conjunction with our partners at the Justice & Accountability Center of Louisiana and the Southern Poverty Law Center. That bill outlaws debt-based incarceration–aka, debtors’ prisons–in Louisiana. Because of his leadership, no one in Louisiana needs to be afraid of ending up in jail because they can’t afford to pay a debt to the state.

That same year, Rep. Lyons also authored House Bill 506 to increase Louisiana’s weekly unemployment compensation, which is among the lowest in the nation. We joined our partners at Step Up Louisiana to successfully support Rep. Lyons in his effort to get that bill passed as well.

Over on the East Bank, in Uptown New Orleans, State Rep. Mandie Landry is running for re-election in House District 91. Sadly, this has turned into a far more contentious battle than it ever should have been, with some Democratic Party heavyweights, including Gov. Edwards, unnecessarily stepping in to endorse one of her challengers.

Rep. Landry has served her constituents admirably and courageously. Among her many accomplishments in her four years in the legislature, she has led the way on our work to provide protections for workers with medical marijuana recommendations. Unfortunately, workers who use this medicine still face discrimination in hiring and in the workplace. But Rep. Landry got House Bill 988 passed in 2022 to protect certain public employees who use medical marijuana, and has continued to try to expand those protections to other workers through the Medical Marijuana in the Workplace Task Force and House Bill 351 earlier this year. Workers with medical marijuana recommendations deserve the same rights as workers with prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances. When we enshrine those rights into law, it will be because of Rep. Landry’s leadership.

Justice Delayed… But Will It Be Denied?

Yesterday, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals announced that it was canceling the redraw of Louisiana’s congressional map, further clouding the future of creating a just and equitable outcome in the case. For several months, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the Milligan case, it appeared that Louisiana was on its way to getting a second majority-minority congressional seat, as the Census numbers and law, namely the Civil Rights Act, dictate. However, with Thursday’s ruling, there are now serious questions about when, or even whether, that day will come.

We will continue to follow and cover this case. As we await next steps, you can use louisiana.redistrictingandyou.org to compare and contrast the previous congressional map, the one that is currently in place, and the one presented in the Robinson case (Louisiana’s companion case to Milligan), as well as the former and current State Senate and State House maps.

Donate & Follow

For the price of about four snoballs (~$20), you can support our campaigns to build a better Louisiana where every citizen has the opportunity to thrive. Please consider donating to Louisiana Progress today.

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