The Nation - News from May 23, 1988

Black Louisiana lawmakers will fight legislation making Cajuns a legally recognized minority in the state because the measure threatens black economic development, state Sen. Jon Johnson said. A measure granting Cajuns minority status was approved 74 to 22 in the state House of Representatives Wednesday over the objections of black lawmakers. They claim counting Cajuns as minorities would dilute the black share of jobs on state projects that must by law hire 10% minority workers. The bill is now in the hands of the state Senate, where Johnson, a New Orleans Democrat and a member of the Legislative Black Caucus, said it must be killed. Cajuns are descendants of French settlers expelled from Canada who settled in the steamy bayou country of south Louisiana in the 1750s. The Louisiana Almanac estimates the number of Cajuns in the state between 200,000 and 300,000. The state’s population is about 4 million.