The St. Charles Center for Faith + Action

The public narrative a nation creates about what is important is reflected in memorials and monuments. Who is honored, what is remembered, what is memorialized tells a story about a society that can’t be reflected in other ways.
–Bryan Stevenson, Equal Justice Initiative Executive Director

Formed in August of 2018, The Orleans Legacy Project (OLP) is a grassroots community coalition made up of a diverse group of individuals who are passionate about righting present and historical injustices, uplifting victims of racial violence, and eradicating racism in our community through reconciliation and direct action.   

Our coalition is proud to partner with the Equal Justice Initiative  (EJI).  Among many other aspects of their incredible mission, EJI has created the National Memorial of Peace & Justice in Montgomery, Alabama.  This memorial acknowledges the horrors of racial injustice in an effort to facilitate the process of restorative truth-telling. 

OLP’s ultimate goal is to bring the Orleans Parish Memorial Monument, which memorializes Orleans Parish victims of racial terror killings during the Jim Crow era, from the National Memorial for Peace & Justice to New Orleans and install this memorial in a public space. 

In accomplishing this goal, we hope to: 
-Publicly acknowledge this history
-Acknowledge the legacy of racial terror in modern day lynchings, as well as in mass incarceration 
-Facilitate racial reconciliation and healing in our greater community
-Contribute to efforts to eliminate systemic and structural racism

We are honored that EJI has accepted our proposal for a historical marker and soil collection  ceremony in Orleans Parish-- a prerequisite for bringing the Orleans Parish Memorial Monument to our city. 

On December 19, 2020, we will erect a historical marker that will memorialize the lynching of Robert Charles and the massacre that terrorized the local African American community, which ultimately led to the murder of several Black residents.  Coinciding with the historical marker dedication, we plan to commemorate the lynching of Hannah Mabry, a 60 year old grandmother and Central City resident, by collecting soil that will be displayed in EJI's Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama.

As a grassroots organization, we do not have the financial capacity to fund these projects or to plan and promote future events.  We are asking for your support so that we can:

-Install and dedicate a historical marker related to the Robert Charles Massacre in the neutral ground of Oretha Castle Haley at MLK Blvd.
-Host a soil collection and remembrance ceremony for Hannah Mabry,  who was killed by a white supremacist mob during the Robert Charles Massacre.  
-Present a virtual dance and readers’ theater performance, with discussion to follow, about the Mass Lynching of 1900 (Date TBD).
-Install historical markers related to three other lynchings that are known to have occurred in Orleans Parish during the Jim Crow era.
-Conduct an essay contest on Racial Justice for public high school students in collaboration with the Equal Justice initiative (Tentative Launch: Spring 2021)
-Collaborate with local community groups, governmental agencies & the Equal Justice Initiative/National Memorial for Peace & Justice to install a duplicate of the Orleans Parish Memorial Monument in a public space in New Orleans.

Thank you for your support! Please continue to follow our journey on Instagram and Facebook!  
Instagram: @orleanslegacyproject
Facebook: Orleans Legacy Project 

See below for photos of our group and past events we have hosted!

Please Note: The St Charles Center for Faith & Action has agreed to become the fiscal sponsor for the Orleans Legacy Project.  Fiscal sponsorship makes donations made to OLP through the St Charles Center for Faith & Action tax deductible.