The www.LaRoots.net  e-bulletin began as a volunteer project www.KerryRoots.com  in March of 2004 at the suggestion of staffers for the Kerry campaign as it pulled "temporarily" out of New Orleans.  One full election cycle has been completed.  Successful at the national level, Democrats have much to do in Louisiana.

     On a summer day in 2007 Senator Barack Obama asked to meet with a small group of New Orleans neighborhood leaders to learn why the recovery was so slow. Because of the LaRoots e-bulletin, a direct involvement in neighborhood recovery issues, and a campaign for the state legislature, Deborah Langhoff (red shirt) was invited to join other activists in the hour long discussion with now President-elect Obama. Especially noteworthy was his opening comment that he understood that we expected to hear from him that afternoon, but we had been invited so that he could hear from us.  He pulled up a chair and began asking questions.  Many months later, his Tulane speech revealed that he understood what he had heard. Also pictured are NAACP leader Denatus King and Pam Deshiell, who would mark a chance meeting in Denver with another photo a year later    when Deborah was a DNCC delegate and Pam accepted a Neighborhood Hero Award for her community work.

Other LaRoots friends were already working for a November success story. 

Thank you to Felicia Kahn for many of these photographs and for the advice.        

  Rob and Debbie Montelero, originally from Gentilly and transplanted to South Carolina after Katrina, work in the local party, where Rob was named a South Carolina Convention delegate.    South Carolina shared hotel accommodations with the Louisiana delegation and they had an orderly, crisp organization.

  Deborah and eldest daughter Megan cross paths on the campaign trail in front of the New Orleans Superdome.  Both members of the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee (along with husband Alan), Megan was an Orleans field organizer for the Coordinated Campaign, Louisiana Victory 2008 that focused on the reelection of Louisiana's senior US Senator Mary Landrieu. VICTORY!

On Opening Day of the Canal Street Campaign HQ, Governor Howard Dean, introduced by OPDEC Chair James Gray, encouraged the troops to register voters in a state that we knew would be an uphill climb for the top of the ticket.  Spirits ran high among the young and the not-so-young

That hard work led Obama State Director David Huynh to open another office uptown and many others throughout the state.

At the Convention in Denver on the night of Michelle's speech, Megan Langhoff is sitting with John Thibodaux, the Louisiana delegation's youngest member.

The 5 photos above convey the sense of being in the Pepsi Center.

  Embedded reporters from the Times-Picayune (Frank Donze and Stephanie Grace) and others covering less familiar terrain are never far away.  http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/08/28/convention-qa-hurricane-politics/

Delegation breakfasts feature a different speaker each day, and end with a line for credentials to the night's event.  Speakers included the Senator, James Carville, Danny Glover, Marc Morial, and State Chairman Chris Whittington.

                Families gather with friends.

           Everyone goes home changed.

OPDEC Chair James Gray and

1st Vice Chair Deborah Langhoff preside over their first series of candidate forums that precede the endorsement vote.

Everyone works really,

really

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really hard

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for a long, long time.

The Obama-Biden ticket easily wins without Louisiana's help.  The Senator is re-elected. Many great candidates win.  Jim Harlan, loses the race but raises vital issues for the people in the 1st Congressional.  Other area Congressional candidates lose as well.

The indicted Congressman from the 2nd Congressional wins two primaries.

Perhaps the courts will do what the people didn't - remove him from office.

Send mail to LaRoots@cox.net  with questions or comments about this web site.
Last modified: 08/01/08