Some citizens in Louisiana are forming a new city in what opponents claim is racist movement.
A predominantly white and affluent area of East Baton Rouge Parish will form the City of St. George after the state Supreme Court rules 4-3 that organizers had followed the proper process for incorporation.
"Today is a great day not only for the citizens of St. George but for East Baton Rouge Parish as well," said attorney Andrew Murrell, one of the leaders of the St. George movement. "This is the culmination of citizens exercising their constitutional rights. We voted and we won."
At a news conference Monday, St. George organizers said work is already underway on setting up the new government the Advocate reported.
The proposed city will be comprised of about 68,000 residents and about 12% are Black. East Baton Rouge Parish is currently about 47% Black.
Opponents claim the new city's formation is inherently racist as it creates legal lines of segregation.
St. George organizers deny it has nothing to do with race. They claim their focus is to create more localized control of tax dollars, the Associated Press reported.
The NAACP Baton Rouge Branch says, "The St. George plan poses significant risks to our education system, threatens the continuity of critical programs, and challenges community representation."
The civil rights group urges the court to "ensure that current funding levels are maintained, if not increased, to support our schools."
Baton Rouge leaders took St. George organizers to court in 2019. The suit two weeks after 54% of voters living within the proposed city's limits voted "yes" on the incorporation. The Louisiana Supreme Court decision upheld the vote.
