2007 was a pivotal year for the Human Relations Commission 

First inaugurated to accept and mediate charges of unlawful discrimination, the HRC began to see another role emerging in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.  Our role was to become the City wide moderator and mediator for all citizens of New Orleans challenged by real or perceived discrimination. More often than not, groups of persons defined by their race, religion, or culture began to see patterns of “blanket” discrimination occur.

The citizens of New Orleans are brave, hard working, fun loving people; we are as diverse as any community in the United States, or perhaps more so because of the traditions of openness and friendliness.  We are also aloof to the extent that many persons find New Orleans a ‘safe haven’.  Artists, writers; musicians, the recorders of our cultures, see New Orleans
as the last bastion of freedom, individuality and fierce independence.  It is that enigma of diversity of races, cultures, creeds and religions that make New Orleans unique, and often times misunderstood.  And so the mission became one of listening to the citizens of our city so that we might learn from one another to respect one another, and therefore create a community that honors the integrity and dignity of ourselves and that of others who are ‘different’ from us.

To that end, the HRC proposed ‘listening’ events that would require that “Conversations with the Human Relations Commission” extend throughout the year.  This undertaking has demonstrated that New Orleanians want to be heard and appreciated and are willing to listen to one another so that we may work together to eliminate discrimination, race baiting, culture clashes and strife between neighborhoods and neighbors.

What follows are the recorded sessions of those conversations.