NOLA council wins white majority

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Houston Chronicle/ Associated Press

Nov. 18, 2007, 1:12AM
NOLA council wins white majority
© 2007 The Associated Press

NEW ORLEANS — A former councilwoman won an at-large seat on the New Orleans City Council on Saturday, creating the first white majority in more than two decades.

Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson defeated Cynthia Willard-Lewis, who is black, with 53 percent of the vote. With all votes counted, Clarkson won with 27,740 votes to Willard-Lewis' 24,874.

Clarkson, 71, will take a seat vacated when councilman Oliver Thomas, who is black, resigned in August after pleading guilty to a bribery charge.

Analysts had said the race could set a baseline for the changing political landscape in a post-Hurricane Katrina city in which the gap between white and black voters is narrowing.

Blacks remain the majority but are now about 58 percent of the population, down from 67 percent before Hurricane Katrina struck in August 2005.



Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/nation/5311457.html

[aquart]

1. Oh, look. They did it.

[Didereaux]

2. that don't bode well for Nagins' 'Chocolate City' n/t

[silverojo]

3. What are their party affiliations?

Means a little more to me than race. I don't give a damn about the color of their skin--I care about whether they'll do a good job.

[ohio2007]

7. .."Oliver Thomas, who is black, resigned in August after pleading guilty to a bribery charge"...

the color is green.

The party affiliation is ignored.
The story should be about corruption but the writer wants to play the race card.

go figger

[NOLALady]

9. She will do a good job for some.

She believes that bringing big business and conventions to New Orleans, rather than helping small business that is already here is the way to go.

[ClintonTyree]

4. The gentrification....

and "whitening" on New Orleans continues as planned. Watch how fast those new levees and flood gates get built now.

[ohio2007]

8. PC correction; in order to " Increase the tax base" and attract investment

the cities foundation needs to be built with local financial aid not just federal
"Katrina trailer" band aid knee jerk decisions to please the media...what a plan...


"Watch how fast those new levees and flood gates get built now."

[Robbien]

5. A headline such as this basing everything on skin color is a huge disgrace

A corrupt black man resigned. A white woman won his seat. Story headline crows that whites are now back in control.

That a story such as this is even written and published in a huge local paper is just stomach turning. Very sad how nasty our country is leaning.

[Gman]

6. I don't think so in this case

as we are now starting to see the results of the RW social experiment that was begun shortly after Katrina. All along the way, the feds have made it a point to prevent as many blacks from returning to NOLA as possible. Prior to Katrina, La was starting to lean blue with NOLA having the biggest concentration of Democrats from it's large black population. Not so anymore. This city council election almost certainly means that Sen, Mary Landrieu may be in trouble next year. If Landrieu loses, it will mean that the post-Katrina social-engineering by the RW in NOLA was successful.

[Chovexani]

10. You get it.

There was a reason they were shipping black folk to Utah and shit.

I'm with that poster upthread who said to watch how fast the levees get rebuilt now.

[Gman]

13. They'll rebuild the levees but not just yet

The levees won't be rebuilt until they have finally bulldozed all the low income areas (read: black areas) that were flooded and now stand vacant. The OWNERS OF THE PROPERTIES are not even allowed back to their property houses (which is effective in keeping them from moving back). Eventually, the property owners will be forced to sell for pennies on the dollar via eminent domain which the city will argue will bring more tax revenue to the city, and the developers will buy the land up. Most likely, the developers that have the inside track on the cheap land will be crooked Republics as they'll have control of NOLA. THEN they'll rebuild the levees.

The RW social experiment in NOLA will be complete.

[boricua79]

17. i must say

it was not the blacks which started to measure everything by race. And sadly, more often than not, having a local government composed of people of your own race/cultural background makes a hell of a difference.

Time and time again, in my professional life, when Latinos and blacks have ruled over institutions I work at or frequent, my concerns (as a Latino man) have been taken seriously.

Again, this is personal experience and cannot be used for statistical certainty, but I sure know that whenever political bodies are ruled by people like me, I feel a lot more comfortable in their policies.

I know this logic could be twisted to support all-white ruling bodies (because it would make whites feel safer), but the reality of politics in this country has been that whenever minorities take power, they don't just rule for the minorities, they rule for all and try to change the status quo.

That being said, I don't think having a majority of all whites in a ruling council in a city with a majority of blacks is a good idea. It lends itself to the "we know what's best for you, so that's why we voted against the wishes of the blacks" mentality.

Call me ethnically chauvinistic, but I trust my type of people in power. And when they screw up, I don't hesitate to call them on their bullcrap either.

And, no, I don't hate whites...so don't get scared or apprehensive.

[shirlden]

11. Clarkson was dumped after Katrina

She has been a politician many years in Nola. A good Democrat for the most part. She always received a big vote from black, white, green, and purple people. For the most part she did a pretty good job, until Katrina.
Then she could only seem to find time to help Algiers on the Westbank. Those of us on the Eastbank could not even get in contact with her. She lives in Algiers. I went to many neighborhood meetings after Katrina when Clarkson showed up to tell us all the wonderful things she had been doing. Those meetings generally got her a booing and a lot of angry voters. We tossed her out of office at the first opportunity because of her lack of concern for anyone who did not live in Algiers.
Having said that...........she is not all bad and for the most part I do believe will be a good Dem on city council.

[ohio2007]

12. You are the only one who has a clue on the local NOLA pulse of life

What happened to all those local politicians and their appointees who received levee funds over the past 30 years?
What did they do with that federal levee upkeep $ before Katrina ?

Did Katrina destroy all the records?

[Doctor_J]

14. Just what Bush had planned when he let them die

Genocide, in Iraq and in NOLA. Rove is pure evil.

[seriousstan]

15. ROVE!!!!!!!! HE'S EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!

[baldguy]

16. Mission Accomplished