Over the years we've seen Black owned businesses in the downtown area withstand attack after attack from members of the DDA's Board of Directors.  

     Whether it was racially motivated remarks during the Black Lives demonstrations downtown on part of Liz Swaine and Janie Landry in 2020, the leaked emails between
Mayor Adrian Perkins and Liz Swaine that indicated her hostility towards any African American presence in the Downtown area, Shreveport's Downtown Development Authority and the Shreveport Downtown Development Corporation have been operating off a long standing foundation of cruelty towards Shreveport's people of color.  It all started when the DDA's Janie Landry made pejorative statements against BLM.

     Here you'll see the Mayor address his concerns towards Liz Swaine and the rest of the DDA for their onslaught of hostile commentary towards Shreveport's people of color, despite Shreveport being one of the few places in the country at the time that saw the Police population work closely with the Mayor's office to ensure the safety and rights of all Black Lives activists and their demonstrations.

     Soon after, the Mayor's private emails with Liz Swaine were leaked indicating that no matter how racist the DDA was, Adrian Perkins was powerless to do anything about.

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     The DDA in a desperate attempt to show indifference towards race has recently opted to vote amongst it's committee to replace Liz Swaine's position as Executive Director with candidates, Cedric Glover and Levette Fuller.

     The DDA's Executive Director position is a non-elected, no term position that pays 200 thousand dollars a year of Municipal tax money.

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