Essence Festival has responded to mounting outrage after obtaining a court order to block a Black-owned business from hosting its own event while the renowned annual celebration of Black culture was kicking off in New Orleans.
Social media timelines were replete with criticism after the news broke on Friday that a New Orleans-based Black-owned bookstore was being prevented from holding a literary block party with Black authors because of a temporary restraining order. Essence Fest also sent a cease and desist letter to author Tamika Newhouse, who organized the block party.
The temporary restraining order and cease and desist letter claim block party organizers didn’t go through the proper licensing procedure to be included as a vendor during the annual Essence Fest celebration. But block party organizers have said the event was not a part of Essence Fest and it was being held on private property.
“It is deeply ironic that Essence, which claims to celebrate and uplift the Black community, would choose to target a business like Baldwin & Co., which aligns with the values of community service and empowerment,” Baldwin & Co. owner DJ Johnson said in a statement. “Such actions are not only unjust but also tarnish the reputation of Essence and raise questions about its commitment to supporting the Black community as a whole.”
Essence Fest responded on Saturday by defending itself after people including former U.S. Senate candidate in Louisiana Gary Chambers spoke out. In a video he posted to social media, Chambers denounced the temporary restraining order and demanded Essence “rectify” the situation with Baldwin & Co.
Judging from Essence Fest’s response on Twitter to Chambers, it’s doubtful that will happen.
“The event organizers misled artists into believing that they were participating in an Essence Festival event. Shockingly, the event charged each author a $650 fee to participate under the guise of working with Essence,”…
Read the full article here
