New Orleans, LA - On Saturday afternoon, February 27, the New Orleans Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NOAARPR) held a panel to discuss the history of police brutality in New Orleans. The panel took place at the Gwangi and Hollywood Community Center in Algiers.
NOAARPR Chair Toni Jones gave a brief history of the rise of policing in the Crescent City, beginning with its origins from slave catchers to the Code Noir during French and Spanish colonial rule.
"Police exist to uphold the ruling power," she said.
Toni cited many historic cases of police brutality throughout the centuries in New Orleans. Members of the community, some of them former Black Panthers who spent much of their lives incarcerated in Angola as political prisoners, affirmed the names and stories of Black residents and freedom fighters past who stood up to police brutality.
"The police are only in our communities not for our security but for our containment," said Sister Shanta Scott of the People's Political Party, quoting Huey P. Newton. Jace Lee Scott, her son, was murdered by the son of NOPD officer Victor Gant in 2019. She educated attendees about the murder, NOPD corruption and cover-ups, and the collusion of city officials and court justices. "Justice must be transparent. Justice must be consistent. Justice must be fearless. No more broken protocol, no more selective enforcement, and no more silence. Justice for Jace Lee Scott. That's my son," said Scott.
NOAARPR member Danyelle Christmas shared about her run for city council, which was inspired by the police brutality and political repression against her uncle who was murdered by NOPD, and her father who was falsely convicted for murder in 1994. She spoke about the impacts incarceration had on her family. Her father spent ten years on death row in Angola, and when he was finally acquitted, they offered him $10. A dollar for each year of his life lost in prison. She continued to connect the struggles of the Black community to the exploitation of capitalism, highlighting systemic issues that negatively impact everyone.
"Let's remember, the KKK is still considered a party, they're still considered a non-profit, they're still recognized by the United States. But the Black Panther Party was dismantled," Christmas said. "We have to rise up."
The panel was followed by an open forum discussion where members of the community shared their experiences within the prison industrial complex. Errol Williams shared his story, incarcerated for 21 years in Angola.
"I don't want to be oppressed anymore. I know what it's like, I've been living it all my life," he said. "I realized the only 'equal opportunity' afforded to me is to die."Another community member proudly stated that "Black history is world history."
NOAARPR will hold a rally on March 5 to pack the city council chambers and demand justice for Jace Lee Scott, federal charges against Victor Gant, and a Civilian Police Accountability Council.