Free expression alive in Terrebonne

It is a wondrous thing, to see the manner in which we as citizens of this nation, state and community, exercise our right to express ourselves. It is a birthright, not a privilege, subject to a few restrictions but then only when necessary.

The question of how far our right to free expression goes gets raised occasionally. Most recently the billionaire presidential candidate, Donald Trump, has suggested that his rights under the First Amendment were violated by demonstrators who got themselves into his Chicago rally. Because of their great numbers, Trump argues, his right to expression, to free speech, was denied. The claim rings a bit hollow, since it was Trump who canceled his own appearance. If the Chicago cops barred him from addressing his followers – and the detractors – maybe that argument could be made. We saw a healthy exercise of First Amendment rights recently right here in Terrebonne Parish. During public discussion of a federal court case that will ultimately determine whether Terrebonne’s manner of selecting its judges violates the Voting Rights Act, several people had things to say. Jerome Boykin, president of the Terrebonne Parish Branch of the NAACP, which brought the suit, heaped sharp criticism on Parish President Gordon Dove, whose opposition to the concept of a minority sub-district is well-documented. Some people considered it rude, others suggested it did not go far enough. But Jerome Boykin had his say, uninterrupted, and was even given an extra minute by the Parish Council to make his point.

Then along came the Rev. Raymond Brown, from New Orleans, who is among those people who perform their function best by stretching our levels of tolerance, forcing us to think and daring us to judge. In a discussion that inarguably has a lot to do with race, particularly when one examines the histories of Terrebonne Parish and Louisiana on the issue of black votes, as the suit before the court demands that we do, Brown raised the question of race. It didn’t go well. Gordon Dove chose the moment when Brown talked about white people being happy that blacks shop in their grocery stores to arise from his seat on the dais to retrieve a bottle of water, thus turning his back on the speaker. I myself have always been careful to restrict human necessity breaks at public meetings to those moments when there is no risk that they be construed – correctly or incorrectly – as editorial comment in motion rather than an innocent effort to sate a human need. But then, Dove’s most recent political experience is in the legislature, which is kind of like college in that nobody has to ask to be excused.

Brown protested Dove’s brief departure, and Dove shot a comment back. A gavel rapped on the dais as Council Chairman John Navy attempted to restore order. Councilwoman Arlanda Williams had a point or two to make, choosing to do so before Brown was finished. Maybe there was some displeasure at Brown’s pointed singling out of the only black members of the council, for not addressing more directly Dove’s decision to involve the council in the litigation. Arlanda lectured Brown about the need for being peaceful, which gave Brown a new point of entry within the discussion. When it was all over Brown got his say, Arlanda Williams returned to her seat after a brief disappearance for purpose of composure, and the meeting went on. Brown accused council members of being cowards, but other than that nothing else happened.

Arguments could be made that Brown was held to a stricter standard than other speakers might. An objective observer would note that his upbraiding of the council and of Dove was not any more inflammatory than some of the words Jerome Boykin had spoken.

The point here is that when it was all over with everyone had their say, and that we should regard that as a blessing rather than an inconvenience or a curse. Freedom, in its various forms of expression, isn’t always pretty. But its expression, so long as nobody gets hurt, is ever more needed. And it was alive and well at the Government Tower Wednesday night. •

Council Chairman John NavyCOURTESY