The head and the heart
In racial reconciliation, what is demanded of us is an ability to feel, acknowledge and process the emotions that arise in tandem with the recounting of history.
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Move the Mindset
How Lafayette commemorates Juneteenth
Organizers say the spirit of Juneteenth is one of unity, an opportunity for all to commemorate a milestone in the struggle for freedom and equality, take stock of enduring injustices and celebrate the contributions of the Black community.
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Lafayette civil rights leader Fred Prejean has died
An advocate for Lafayette’s Black community from a young age, Prejean was instrumental in summoning public pressure to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Alfred Mouton from its perch in Downtown Lafayette in 2021. Prejean was 75.
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Memorials with soil surface Lafayette’s untold history of lynchings
A local coalition reconciles past and present through ceremonies of land and history. This weekend, they remember the lynching of Louis Sinclair in 1896.
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‘Take them all down’ — Lafayette artist uses the Mouton statue as a canvas for a message of change
Artist Lessie LeBlanc-Melancon is using the nearly 100-year-old statue itself to project her views on the statue and what it stands for — literally
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Integrating Lafayette’s segregated history
Lafayette’s telling of its history has largely left out black perspective. Rick Swanson is trying to fix that.
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