Louisiana AG Jeff Landry Stands Up To NOLA Mayor Cantrell In Support Of Lauren Daigle
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry has thrown his hat into the Daigle-Cantrell conversation.
Back in early November, New Orleans residents were upset after Lauren Daigle joined Christian singer/activist/politician Sean Feucht for a worship concert in the French Quarter at a time when the entire city was on lockdown.
The locals, especially the music and arts community, felt like the outdoor concert that featured at least a thousand people (many not wearing masks) was a slap in the face to all the struggling artists and those in the local music industry who have been handcuffed throughout the coronavirus pandemic in an effort to get the numbers under control.
When pressed by those looking for answers to how the city could allow such a concert to go on, New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell claimed that the show was not permitted and went on under the guise of a protest. Cantrell also called out Lafayette Lauren Daigle by name for being a part of a large gathering that she called irresponsible as Louisiana was trying to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Over a month later, Cantrell was still clearly unhappy with Daigle as she urged organizers of Dick Clark's annual 'New Year's Rockin Eve' to remove Daigle from their New Orleans event. She expressed her feelings in a letter to the event planners.
Ms. Daigle cannot and should not be rewarded with national media exposure and a public spotlight. She harmed our people; she risked the lives of our residents and she strained our first responders in a way that is unconscionable in the midst of a public health crisis.
Now, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry has penned a letter to Daigle, offering her his support and expressing his concern over recent actions by Cantrell that he described as "targeting."
The Louisiana Legislature reinforced the rights of individuals to worship freely by adopting the Preservation of Religious Freedom Act. See La. Rev. Stat. 13:5232 (“Free exercise of religion is a fundamental right of the highest order in this state.”). State and federal law protect your right to assemble in a public square to worship and protest.
Landry goes on to bring up other events that were allowed to happen under Cantrell's watch. You can read the entire letter below.
As far as this whole situation goes, I almost have to wonder if Lauren Daigle wants any part of it at all?
Obviously, she may not have meant for things to unfold the way they did in New Orleans at the worship concert. After all, when the backlash broke out, she simply took a break from social media. Even after Cantrell made her wishes to have Daigle removed from the NYE event public, she has remained business as usual on all her social media accounts promoting Christmas merch and announcing her television performances.
Something tells me Lauren Daigle would rather fly under the radar than get involved in a situation that has been highly politicized since the dawn of COVID-19.
Something also tells me that it may be too late for all that.