The road to hell is truly paved with good intentions.   A Nations Labor Relations Board rule which would classify large corporate franchisors as “co-owners” (with the locally-owned franchisees with whom they are contracted) seemed an easy way to expand labor protections into a wider area of the economy.      Instead, Rule § 103.40(a) threatens to put countless independently-owned franchises out of business, ending one of the most valuable parts of the economy for people of color to advance.  More African-American generational wealth has been created through t ..read more

By Minh Ha Contributing Writer (Vertienews.org) — Less than two months after the Orleans Parish School Board voted to create the Leah Chase School – the first permanent, direct-run public school in New Orleans in nearly two decades – the NOLA Public Schools district has hired three new top administrators who will have a hand in shaping it. The new employees include two central office administrators guiding the district’s approaches to academics and the arts – important hires as the school board has gestured toward the expansion of direct-run schools in New Orleans after years of charter operat ..read more

By Josie Abugov Contributing Writer (Veritenews.org) — City and federal officials, local artists and economic development leaders gathered on Wednesday (April 17) for a ribbon cutting to commemorate a new event space under the Claiborne Expressway – the first phase in a large-scale planned revamp of North Claiborne Avenue. The new “Backatown Plaza” sits on North Claiborne Avenue between Orleans Avenue and St. Louis Street. The renovated portion of the street will hold space for more than 30 vendors, string lights, a portable stage and green infrastructure to help mitigate flooding on North Cla ..read more

By Shawniece Mitchell Contributing Writer From Ray Charles to Lil’ Richard to Ike and Tina Turner, the “Drop” as it was affectionately called in New Orleans, was a space where both the social and civic advancement of the Black community took place. Described as “New Orleans’ swankiest nightclub” from the 1940s through the 1970s, the Dew Drop Inn ushered in the rise of rhythm and blues and a space for the Black community in the segregated South to have a nightclub space, hotel, barbershop and beauty parlor all-in-one. Now 50 years later, the timeless history of The Dew Drop Inn has been brought ..read more

By Christopher Tidmore Contributing Writer New Orleans is blessed with a multitude of green spaces; parks which seem to cover so many parts of the city so often sit neglected. Partly, this results from an accident of history as the city’s green spaces were often acquired by an absence of mind. Donations of land were made for other purposes and ended up as parks – as no one ever proposed another purpose. As a result, city leaders never drew up a plan of governance for our park system or how to adequately pay for their maintenance. A new masterplan being proposed to the New Orleans City Council ..read more

By Geraldine Wyckoff Contributing Writer It’s very unusual for gospel music to play a leading role at major music festivals. Occasionally, a special gospel artist might appear – as did Mahalia Jackson, who performed at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1970 and famously sang “Just a Closer Walk with Thee,” paired with another legendary New Orleanian, trumpeter and vocalist Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong. The widely beloved Staple Singers also might get an invite. From the very beginning of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival gospel was not only featured, it was soon bestowed a tent of its own a ..read more

By Josie Abugov Contributing Writer (Veritenews.org) — Before Hurricane Katrina, Willie Woods worked in banquet catering at the Fairmont Hotel (now the Roosevelt), a rare business in the city where hospitality workers were unionized. Woods was a member of the union and he felt the “union difference,” as he called it: raises, health care, benefits. When he returned to the city after the storm, he took on three jobs at non-unionized hotels just to feed his family. His firsthand understanding of the advantages of unionized workplaces motivated him to start organizing at the Hilton Riverside. Afte ..read more

By Makenna Mincey Contributing Writer High school students across New Orleans came together this year to do something big for their city: design an ideal recreation and entertainment venue. On April 17 at 6 p.m. in the Senator Ted Hickey Ballroom of the University of New Orleans’ University Center, students from the New Orleans Career Center (NOCC) presented their project – a water park and a multi-story outdoor entertainment venue – at the ACE graduation ceremony. “The students participating in ACE this year at NOCC have been doing an excellent job working with the architect, construction, an ..read more

By Khalil Gillon Contributing Writer (Veritenews.org) — About six years ago, Raynata Lockett found out that she would soon lose a lifeline for herself and her four children. She had been receiving federally-funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, also known as food stamps, for a decade. But just as Lockett, a United States Army veteran, was set to graduate from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, she was told that because of disability benefits she received from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, her income was $100 above the threshold to qualify for the progr ..read more

By Ariana Figueroa Contributing Writer (States Newsroom) — The Biden administration last week finalized a new rule that would require anyone selling a gun to obtain a federal license and conduct background checks. The rule aims to close what’s known as the “gun show loophole.” Gun merchants who sell online, by mail or at flea markets and gun shows until now have not been subject to the same federal regulations as those who own and operate gun stores as their main source of income. “This single gap in our federal background check system has caused unimaginable pain and suffering,” Vice Presiden ..read more