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‘Almost a murder a day’: Big city may soon become US ‘murder capitol’ under Dem mayor’s leadership

July 2, 2022 | | Print Article

Under the leadership of twice-elected Mayor LaToya Cantrell, New Orleans is well on its way to becoming the murder capital of the United States, according to a new report.

Like her fellow Democratic mayors in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, Cantrell is facing record-breaking crime, homelessness, and the ongoing effects of closing down businesses in response to COVID-19, Fox News reports.

Now, after multiple scandals, the city’s first female mayor’s approval ratings have plummeted 20 points in one year to just 44%, according to a June 21 poll from Faucheux Strategies and the New Orleans Crime Coalition.

Sentiment for Cantrell began to shift when she imposed what many residents deemed as Draconian measures against COVID-19 only to promptly disregard them in her own pandemic-era life.

Meanwhile, murders in the Big Easy climbed.

According to a weekly bulletin released by the Metropolitan Crime Commission, the number of homicides surged 150% during the week of June 21, compared to 2019 numbers from the same time. Eight of the 148 year-to-date homicides occurred during the week of June 14.

If you’re surprised that you didn’t hear about so many deaths, it’s probably because Cantrell rarely does press conferences on homicides — a practice Democratic City Councilman Eugene Green argues makes sense, given the sheer number of them.

“I mean, that’s almost a murder a day,” Green told Fox News Digital. “It’s hard to make a statement every day.”

The number of carjackings in New Orleans has also soared, according to the Commission’s bulletin. The number of year-to-date incidents under Cantrell stands at 154. During the week of June 27, carjackings rose a staggering 191% compared to the same time in 2019.

To combat the crisis, on June 15, Mayor Cantrell cut the ribbon on a “peace pole.”

“This afternoon, the city through the Department of Parks & Parkways in collaboration with the Tupac Amur Shakur Foundation, Tulane University, & the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra hosted a ribbon cutting of the newly installed Peace Pole to help foster peace in our communities,” she tweeted. “The TASF sponsors several free services to the community surrounding mental health, physical health, and overall development.”

Surprisingly, peace did not break out in New Orleans.

Instead, that very afternoon, two people were injured in a shooting not far from the installation.

But Cantrell remained unwavering in her commitment to fine art.

Two days later, she unveiled what she described as a “breathtaking” temporary downtown installation: a two-story Afro pick pretentiously named “All Power to All People.”

It did not carry the profound message she was going for.

It was on that day, June 17, as Cantrell announced a $7.2 million bond to public art, that Fox8 Local First reported that New Orleans could soon become the “murder capital of the US.”

“Art ranks last in terms of where money should be spent in New Orleans,” said Laura Rodrigue, a member of a local mothers’ advocacy group, the Bayou Mama Bears. “People can’t even leave their homes to appreciate art without the fear of violent death.”

Melissa Fine
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