Orleanians expect its City Council to be proactive

The New Orleans City Council is the legislative branch of the City of New Orleans. It consists of seven members – five elected from single-member districts and two elected at large. The council members are elected to four-year terms using the two-round system. The members of the council choose the president and vice president after each election.

Voters elected Helena N. Moreno to At-Large, Jean-Paul “JP” Morrell to At-Large, Joseph I. Giarrusso III to District A, Lesli Harris to District B, Freddie King III to District C, Eugene Green to District D, and Oliver Thomas to District E. Each member is assigned to several of the Council’s ten standing committees.

City Council members last Monday took the oath of office. Council members must work hard for their annual salaries of $93,504 because, as the Bible says in Luke 12:48, “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.”

The political climate in which the Council must operate is neither that of our grandparents’ nor our parents’ political situation. Nope! Thanks to social media, where anyone and everyone can voice their opinion, launch issue campaigns, and call out elected officials for not doing their jobs, the scrutiny of politicians is willfully transparent.

Gone are the days when residents could not get a response to their inquiries and requests because political officeholders and their staffers were non-responsive. The 21st-century political revolution and political pressures groups, even individuals, are televised. Black media is watching, and so is big brother.

Today’s political observers and activists demand fairness, equality and a seat at the table. They’re attending meetings and speaking their truths, protesting in the streets, blogging, vlogging, tweeting, Facebooking, Instagramming, and live-stream podcasting to sound off.

The council members’ situation is reminiscent of Martha and the Vandellas song, “Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.” Every step they take will be scrutinized. The question is, Do they know that business as usual — pushing paper, appeasing corporate interests, turning a deaf ear, and ego-tripping – is no longer acceptable in the decade of activism?

Ask any resident about the quality of life in New Orleans, and you’ll hear a litany of issues that citizens want to address. They say, “I love my city but…” You’ll be hard-pressed to find anyone who doesn’t have a complaint. Whether it’s potholes, garbage collection, crime, high utility bills, barren public parks, property taxes, low wages, increased insurance rates, or COVID, there is a massive to-do list confronting the New Orleans City Council.

Yet, there are promising signs that this new City Council expects to be held accountable. During the COVID pandemic, the City Council facilitates e-comments during the Council’s virtual public meetings. Residents can watch the live stream of the meeting here or watch the live broadcast on Cox Cable Channel 6 in Orleans Parish.

Still, the politically savvy, the civil rights, voting rights, human rights, and environmental rights activists are tuned in and turning up to speak truth the power. Silence is not an option for Generation X and Millennials, and accountability is everything.

They expect City Council members to be proactive, not reactive to the needs of citizens. If they fail to serve the public, they will be ousted.

There’s little tolerance in our communities for inaction and bureaucracy. The very elections they won are signs of the times. Incumbents got voted out, and newcomers got voted in. With most of the council members belonging to Gen. X and Gen. Y (Millennials), they already know.

This article originally published in the January 17, 2022 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.