Every year, the endangered species of phonebooks are delivered to about thirty percent of American households.

The most recent copy of the Lafayette Parish edition is raising eyebrows. 

“Just seeing that Jim Crow statue was a heartbreaker for me but, considering the timing of the distribution of this booklet really disturbed me.”

Fred Prejean is President of the Move the Mindset organization. 

A group with the objective of moving the statue of confederate General Alfred Mouton off of public property and into a museum.

The phonebook landed in Prejean’s neighborhood the weekend of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day which Prejean believes was a calculated strategy. 

“To counter the joyousness of celebrating the Martin Luther King Day.”

Prejean’s concern stems from the history of this monument and others like it, that were constructed as reminders of the Jim Crow era.

He said in an address to the city council, businesses considering making Lafayette home, may interpret the image on the phonebook, as a city that fosters racial disharmony. 

President and CEO Ben Berthelot with Lafayette Convention and Visitors Convention says:

“We are known for and take pride in being a hospitable community, welcoming to all regardless of age, race, religion, orientation, or anything else.”