Episode 31 Mayor John Hussey - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Mayor John Hussey sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development for the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:

0:50 1. Mayor Hussey, you were the Mayor of Shreveport from 1982-1990 and for the four years before that you served on the Shreveport City Council. For someone out there considering a career in politics, in your opinion what are some of the traits that make someone effective in politics?

 

3:10 2. One reason that we started this “Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home” initiative was because we felt our community had a self-esteem issue and we needed to spend more time highlighting the positive aspects of ourselves. Do you feel like Shreveport-Bossier has always had a negative self-image or what do you think led to this feeling that seems fairly rampant now in our community?

 

7:58 3. I would imagine one of the more difficult events you oversaw during your term in office were the riots that occurred in Cedar Grove in 1988. I came across a quote of yours that appeared in the Washington Post days after rioters looted and set fire to businesses in Cedar Grove where you said:

 

“We've got problems in our economy; we've got problems in our racism; we've got many other problems."

 

We’re now 34 years removed from the Cedar Grove event. Would you still say something similar about the state of our community now?

 

11:10 4. From your perspective, what are some of the areas of our community that may be struggling more than when you were in office?

 

14:10 5. What are some of the areas of our community where we seem to be doing better than when you were in office?

 

17:44 6. Lastly, as you look around, what makes you optimistic about the future of our community?