NEW ORLEANS, LA – September 30, 2024 – The New Orleans Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (formerly New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police) will hold an emergency rally on Wednesday, October 1st, at 6:00 PM in front of the Hale Boggs Federal Building (500 Poydras Street). The action is a direct response to Jeff Landry’s letter to Pete Hegseth, of Trump’s “Department of War”, formally requesting the deployment of 1,000 National Guard to occupy Louisiana until the end of 2026 under the pretext of fighting crime.
Organizers condemn the move as a blatant attempt to quell popular democratic resistance to Trump’s agenda and attack Black and immigrant communities. The rally, held in alongside similar resistance in Washington D.C., Memphis, Chicago, and Portland, will demand that local elected officials use every legal and political means possible to fight this threat of military occupation.
“Trump and Landry plan to use the military to harass and oppress our Black and immigrant residents, and these attacks on our communities must be defeated,” said Toni Jones, chairwoman of the New Orleans Alliance. “We demand our elected officials who side with democracy to stand up alongside us with some real backbone in this fight. We say ‘No Trump, No Troops!’ and we will be in the streets to make our voices heard.”
“The use of our nation’s military for ‘law enforcement’ is not only immoral and unnecessary, it is illegal,” stated Clare Leavy, chair of Indivisible New Orleans. “People of conscience must do everything possible to protect our communities from persecution and abuse. We stand proudly with our partners to say NO TROOPS IN OUR STREETS.”
In addition to opposing military occupation, the rally will champion the long-term solution of community control of the police. The Alliance’s central campaign is for the establishment of a Civilian Police Accountability Council (CPAC)—a democratically elected board of civilians with the power to appoint the Police Superintendent, conduct independent investigations, hire and fire officers, and set the NOPD’s budget and policies.
“True safety doesn’t come from military occupation; it comes from democratic accountability,” Jones continued. “In the spirit of self-determination, we are demanding community control of the police now. We need a CPAC to ensure the police are accountable to the people of New Orleans, not to a political agenda aimed at repression.”
ABOUT US: The New Orleans Alliance, formerly known as New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police, was founded in 2021 as a local chapter of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (NAARPR). Its primary campaign is for the establishment of a Civilian Police Accountability Council (CPAC) to bring democratic oversight and accountability to the New Orleans Police.
