Erect Statues for Morial, L’Overture, Deslonde, and Pinchback
By Jeff Thomas
Ernest “Dutch” Morial was the first African American mayor in the city of New Orleans. His place in New Orleans political history is well documented, but since he died nearly 30 years ago a quick recap of his numerous first accomplishments include being the first African American to graduate from LSU law school and the first to serve as juvenile judge and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Replace Robert E. Lee with Dutch Morial.
Toussaint Loverture led the most successful and famous slave revolt in history. A veteran and skilled soldier, led an army of slaves and free blacks like himself and defeated both French and British forces and eventually became ruler of the entire island of Hispaniola. General Loverture’s great skills as a fighter eventually enabled Haiti to become the first black republic in the Western hemisphere and led to France’s decision to sell Louisiana to the United States.
Replace PGT Beauregard statue with Toussaint Loverture
Charles Deslonde led the largest slave revolt in American history in 1811. Seeing the horrors of sugar cane farming, this heroic freedom fighter planned and executed the largest slave revolt in American history. Himself a mulatto and a transplant from Haiti, Deslonde carefully planned, recruited African warriors and attempted a Haitian style revolt in 1811 along the German coast. Hoping to make it to New Orleans and join with others in Congo Square, Deslonde’s attempt was unsuccessful. Armed with only a few guns and hand tools, whites with guns squelched the revolt and brutally killed and beheaded around 100 of the 500 members of the revolt.
Replace the Liberty monument with a statue honoring Charles Deslonde
Starting in 1892 for 6 weeks, P.B. S. Pinchback served as the first and only African American governor in the state of Louisiana. Pinchback was also the first African American elected to Congress in Louisiana. In 1880, Pinchback also sponsored and passed legislation which created Southern University, originally located in NOLA. Pinchback was a founding member of the Comité des Citoyens formed to fight for the civil rights of African Americans. This group launched the landmark New Orleans case Plessy v Ferguson, which created the longstanding separate but equal doctrine that dominated the American landscape for 68 years.
Replace Jefferson Davis Statue with a statue honoring P.B.S. Pinchback
Jeff Thomas
Publisher • Opinion Columnist • Licensed General Contractor • Real Estate Appraiser • New Orleans
Jeff Thomas is the publisher of Black Source Media and one of New Orleans’ most direct voices on civic affairs, economic justice, and Louisiana politics. He writes from the intersection of experience and accountability — as a licensed general contractor,a tech company founder and executive with over 30 years experience, and a businessman who has worked across the city’s civic, media, and construction ecosystems for decades.
His Sunday column covers Louisiana legislative politics, insurance discrimination, housing policy, and the forces shaping Black community life in New Orleans and across the state. Thomas writes in the tradition of Black journalists who hold power accountable without apology — building arguments from data, delivering verdicts from evidence, and speaking to Black New Orleans with the directness the moment demands.
He is also the principal of Executive Appraisers Louisiana, an MBE-certified real estate appraisal firm, and EA Inspection Services, LLC, a government inspection services company. Black Source Media is his platform for the civic conversation New Orleans has needed and too rarely had.
Selected Articles by Jeff Thomas
Black Neighborhoods Pay the Highest Insurance Rates in Louisiana. Here’s What They Don’t Want You to Know.
They Didn’t Yell the N-Word. They Went to Law School, Bided Their Time, and Rewrote the Constitution Instead.
Vappie vs. Morrell: Why Does Justice Look Different in New Orleans?
The State Has the Money. New Orleans East Just Needs Them to Use It.
The Failure of Mitch Landrieu
Publisher — Black Source Media
Jeff Thomas
Publisher • Opinion Columnist • Licensed General Contractor • Real Estate Appraiser • New Orleans
Jeff Thomas is the publisher of Black Source Media and one of New Orleans’ most direct voices on civic affairs, economic justice, and Louisiana politics. He writes from the intersection of experience and accountability — as a licensed general contractor,a tech company founder and executive with over 30 years experience, and a businessman who has worked across the city’s civic, media, and construction ecosystems for decades.
His Sunday column covers Louisiana legislative politics, insurance discrimination, housing policy, and the forces shaping Black community life in New Orleans and across the state. Thomas writes in the tradition of Black journalists who hold power accountable without apology — building arguments from data, delivering verdicts from evidence, and speaking to Black New Orleans with the directness the moment demands.
He is also the principal of Executive Appraisers Louisiana, an MBE-certified real estate appraisal firm, and EA Inspection Services, LLC, a government inspection services company. Black Source Media is his platform for the civic conversation New Orleans has needed and too rarely had.
Selected Articles by Jeff Thomas
Black Neighborhoods Pay the Highest Insurance Rates in Louisiana. Here’s What They Don’t Want You to Know.
They Didn’t Yell the N-Word. They Went to Law School, Bided Their Time, and Rewrote the Constitution Instead.
Vappie vs. Morrell: Why Does Justice Look Different in New Orleans?
The State Has the Money. New Orleans East Just Needs Them to Use It.
The Failure of Mitch Landrieu
Take em down!! We can put up whatever we’d like later!!
Nice choices. I bet these Southerners won’t appreciate these great men and suggest some white alternative. These Southerners don’t value black men
Take them down already!!!! Tired of these insults in the sky!
Idiots!!!! Stop trying to divide this city. Those damn monuments have been there and black mayors weren’t offended by them and worried about making the city a great place to live, work or visit OK Nagen was an idiot, he only worried about putting money in his pocket!! So can we get a real mayor and council that will focus on good and not division???!!!