Civil Rights Groups Call on Louisiana Legislature to Change Course Before Enacting Congressional Map that Denies Fair Representation to Black Voters

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Ahead of final debate on Louisiana's congressional map, scheduled for May 28, the Legal Defense Fund, along with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), ACLU of Louisiana, NAACP Louisiana State Conference, and Power Coalition for Equity and Justice submitted a letter to the Louisiana House of Representatives calling for urgent amendments and a transparent process.

The bill laying out the proposed map (SB 121) drastically diminishes representation for Black voters in Louisiana, mirroring the prior congressional map that was challenged in 2022 because it packed Black voters into a single congressional district. Amendments to SB 121 have failed to mitigate this harm and, instead, have further undermined basic redistricting principles by chopping up more parishes and communities. This is a flagrant effort to consolidate political power in the hands of the white majority and deny communities across the state - especially Black Louisianians - an equal opportunity to participate in the political process.

The letter presents two alternative maps that better reflect the diverse needs of Louisiana's electorate. They also heed overwhelming calls from community members for a fair map, including hundreds of Louisianians who have spoken up during Louisiana's multi-year redistricting fight.

The first map, drafted by Math and Science Professors in Louisiana, was previewed for years of litigation including most recently in an amicus brief filed in Callais. The other, drawn by Dr. Michael Latner of the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice at Harvard Law School and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, draws upon socioeconomic data to unite communities with shared economic needs. Both maps respond to the limitations imposed by the Louisiana v. Callais ruling, while far exceeding SB 121 on traditional redistricting criteria and fundamental tenets of fair representation.

The Supreme Court's ruling inCallais has done incredible harm to voting rights protections and sewn chaos into election processes nationwide. But in Louisiana, specifically, the legislature's conscientious choice to advance a map that unnecessarily truncates Black voters' political power into one district cannot be rationalized by the Callais decision nor any tenet of representative democracy. Amendment to SB 121 is necessary and urgent.

Read the full letter here