Natchitoches

Like from following you on the social track, as you were like posting about it, it was like, oh, where's Grady today? Like, it wasn't like, oh, I'm going to fit this in when I'm going to see this person or when I'm going to do that thing.

It was like, no, I'm flying to drive to Natchitoches, Louisiana, and then to drive to Beaumont, Texas, which I still regret not figuring out like how we could meet up when you were on that I-10 stretch because that's, there's only what, I think Louisiana has one or do we have two? Do we have one in New Orleans? Yeah.

You have New Orleans.

Okay.

So it was a long trip.

Yeah.

I mean, Pensacola down to New Orleans, then up to Natchitoches, then back down to Beaumont.

I mean, yeah, that's days.

here the legislature drew new maps after the 2020 census one minority majority district democrats sued saying you got to make two black majority districts because one third of the people in louisiana are black and according to their logic only people who are black can represent other black people in congress so louisiana has to have two black districts Well, in 2024, Governor Jeff Landry caved to that argument, had the legislature redraw the districts again, creating two minority-majority districts, but one of those was so badly gerrymandered it ran more than 200 miles long.

It was less than two miles wide in multiple locations, cobbling together black neighborhoods from Baton Rouge to Lafayette to Alexandria to Natchitoches to Mansfield to Shreveport.

It was a monstrosity, and it was eventually shot down by the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year in a ruling saying that race could not be the major decision in drawing, the major decision factor in drawing congressional districts.

And as you say, that's settled law now.

So today I want to give a special shout out to listeners in Canada.

Ashburn, Virginia, Sydney, New South Wales, Columbus, Ohio, Scottsboro, Alabama, Atlanta, Georgia, Wellington, New Zealand, Uppsala, Sweden, Orlando, Florida, Naples, Florida, Council Bluffs, Iowa, London, England, Natchitoches, Louisiana, Hyuga, South Carolina, Meridian, Mississippi, Salt Lake City, Utah, Tehran, Iran, Cardiff, Wales, Windsor, Connecticut, Flemish, Brabant, Belgium, Calgary, Alberta, Kyoto, Japan, Frankfurt, Germany, Woodbury, New Jersey, Irvine, California, Canary Wharf, London, Denver, Colorado, San Jose, California, and Femina and Omar, Northern Ireland.

Thank you for pressing play.

Thank you for showing up.

And then you've got a back-to-back Northwestern State.

You'll play them in Natchitoches Thursday night, and then you'll come back to Commerce for Senior Day on that at 1 o'clock in the Fieldhouse for the final, from what I understand, the final volleyball match that will ever be played in the Fieldhouse.

And it's a long-storied history.

That's what we really need, some late heroics from our coaches and from our players.

I'm so proud.

Yesterday we received the official endorsement from Congressman Cleo Fields because we picked up in Shreveport and Natchitoches and several parts of the district.

We picked up a lot of what used to be Congressional District 6.

So the map for us is 15 parishes and the only parish that is cut in half is Calcasieu parish.

amazing yeah yeah well what how did you get involved in all this

well i've worked for the red river waterway commission for 16 years and again we're a local government entity but we cover the seven parishes that the red river runs through in louisiana caddo Natchitoches, Red River, Grant, Avoyles, and Rapides.

And so we cover a large area.

And we typically build, we have 22 recreation areas on the river and two RV parks, one in Natchitoches and one in Colfax.

And so traditionally, that's what we've done.

We've been around since around 1970.