(The Slice News): Lawmakers and faith leaders are weighing in on the Supreme Court's consequential Louisiana redistricting decision that dissolves the congressional map declaring racial gerrymandering unconstitutional --- an action the NAACP called devastating for voting rights.
Congressman Cleo Fields whose 6th District is affected by the ruling is urging accelerated voter participation to push back. He said, 'It's a terrible ruling. People fought so hard to gain access to the voting box."
Theron Jackson Pastor of the Morning Star Baptist Church in Shreveport stated the ruling is not just about a map, but whether the law recognizes inequality. He emphasized that weakened representation often leads to weakened resources for communities, affecting health care, jobs, and education.
The concern from the Black Church extended beyond the state level.
Presiding Bishop of COGIC J Drew Sheard said in a statement:
"The history of Black participation in American democracy has never been gifted, it has always been wrestled from the grip of injustice," Sheard said. That struggle was born out of the Black Church where leaders continue to speak out for the marginalized.
Race, Fields argued can not be extracted from the Voting Rights Act, adding that majority White districts had never in history elected a Black candidate in Louisiana. For this very reason Democrats in the state issued the challenge to redraw the maps hoping to balance the scales.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson a member of the First Baptist Church in Pineville opposed the previous map.
"I believe deeply that every citizen deserves to be represented based on the whole population, not divided by race or political agendas," he offers to the Baptist Message website.
That site indicates that some Louisiana pastors support colorblind representation.
In the Pelican State, Blacks comprise 33%:of the population while Whites make up 56%.