February 8 - February 14, 2016
Page 7
THE LOUISIANA WEEKLY -
YOUR MULTICULTURAL MEDIUM
#Stoppoverty
summit tackles economic issues
By Fritz Esker
Contributing Writer
On January 16, just days before
Martin Luther King Day, the Sixth
Baptist Church hosted the
#Stoppoverty Summit.
Torin Sanders, Sixth Baptist
Church’s senior pastor, said his
community wanted to honor Dr.
King’s legacy of challenging the
United States’ socioeconomic
structures. Located on Felicity
Street in the Lower Garden
District, the church’s congregation
consists of many members of the
former St. Thomas Housing
Project. Poverty is and always has
been an important issue for that
population.
At the time of his assassination,
Dr. King was working on the Poor
People’s Campaign, an effort to
gain economic justice for disad-
vantaged Americans. Sanders
sought to stimulate discussion and
listen to ideas about stopping
poverty.
“Our poverty rate is higher than
it was back then (in King’s
era)…Income inequality is greater
than it was back then,” Sanders
said. “If we as a nation focus on
reducing poverty, we can do it.”
The event started with remarks
by Sanders and a rendition of “We
Shall Overcome.” Selected church
youth delivered readings and their
thoughts on poverty. Raven Ancar
said it’s the duty of those who call
themselves Christians to care
about the poor.
“If we are truly a Christian
nation, we must solve this prob-
lem,” Ancar said.
After a few more remarks from
Sanders, a panel discussion began
featuring the Rev. Jay Augustine,
community organizer Jacques
Morial, and Thelma French, presi-
dent/CEO of Total Community
Action New Orleans. After a Q&A
session and a break, Councilman
Jared Brossett (District D) and
Mary Ambrose, senior vice presi-
dent of the United Way, anchored a
second discussion.
Rev. Augustine said Louisiana
has reasons for great optimism
regarding poverty, partially due to
the election of John Bel Edwards
as governor. Augustine pointed to
the new governor’s acceptance of
the Medicaid expansion, making
more than 300,000 Louisianans
eligible for the program.
He also emphasized how much
African Americans need access to
capital to start businesses and buy
homes. He praised organizations
like Liberty Bank for providing
this opportunity. Ownership of
businesses and homes can give
minorities a greater sense of auton-
omy and control in their lives.
“There’s nothing wrong with
renting, but there’s something spe-
cial about owning your own
home,” Augustine said.
The panels spoke about flaws in
the city’s current economic struc-
ture. They discussed low wages
and rapidly increasing rents, which
price more working class and poor
people out of Orleans Parish.
“Wealth is built on the backs of
working poor people who struggle
every day,” said Morial. “We need
a laser-focused effort on affordable
housing in New Orleans otherwise
we’ll be priced out for good.”
Morial talked about how the
city’s housing prices have
increased at rate three times the
national average. As a result, it’s
likelier that workers will live far-
ther away from their jobs than
before, leading to longer com-
mute times.
“It (long commutes) robs people
of time,” Morial said. If a person
spends an hour round-trip com-
muting every day, “That’s five
hours a week you could’ve spent
with your kids or helping an elder-
ly family member.”
Regarding progress, Councilman
Brossett pointed to the minimum
wage ordinance he sponsored that
set $10.55 as the minimum wage
for certain companies that do busi-
ness with the City of New Orleans.
The first panel said it is impor-
tant for people to challenge policy-
makers, but equally important for
citizens to challenge themselves.
“We must challenge every piece
of policy,” French said. “What
does it do for the least of us? Does
it sound good on paper but when it
rolls out, is nothing being accom-
plished? We must pay attention.”
“We have to call ourselves into
account,” Morial said. “Ask our-
selves repeatedly - ‘What have I
done? What more can I do?’”
French criticized unemployment
statistics, which focus on the num-
ber of citizens receiving unem-
ployment benefits. Those numbers
don’t include people working 2-3
part-time jobs to make a meager
living. She added that if New
Orleans doesn’t provide more mid-
dle-class jobs, then the city will
resemble San Francisco with only
very poor and very wealthy people.
The need for government leaders
to create meaningful policies to aid
the working poor was a common
theme throughout the discussions.
“If we don’t institutionalize
change, it won’t last,” said panel
moderator Barbara Major.◊
Nation’s oldest female veteran dies
WASHINGTON (AP) — The
oldest U.S. female veteran has
died at 108.
The U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs said in a news
release that Alyce Dixon died in
her sleep January 27 at a
Washington, D.C., veterans liv-
ing center.
Dixon was born in Boston in
1907. She joined the military in
1943, and was among one of the
first African-American women in
the Army. As a member of the
Women’s Army Corps, she was
stationed in England and France,
where she served in the posta
service as part of the 6888th
Battalion.
After leaving the Army, sh
worked at the Census Bureau and
the Pentagon.
Brian A. Hawkins is director o
the center where Dixon lived. H
called Dixon a “strong-willed,
funny, wise, giving and feisty
WWII veteran.”◊
ALYCE DIXON
