WALLACE, La. — Sisters Jo and Dr. Joy Banner live just miles from where their ancestors were enslaved more than 200 years ago in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana. Their tidy Creole cottage cafe in the small, river-front town of Wallace lies yards away from property their great-grandparents bought more than a century ago.
It’s a historic area the sisters have dedicated themselves to keeping free of the heavy industry that lines the opposite shore of the Mississippi River.
“We have all these little pockets of free towns surrounding these plantation cane fields. It’s such a great story of tenacity and how we were able to be financially independent and economically savvy,” Joy Banner said.
Today, miles of sugar cane border homes on Wallace’s west side. Eastward, two plantations tell the story of formerly enslaved people: One has more than a dozen slave quarters, the other a memorial commemorating a slave revolt.
Directly across the Mississippi, refineries and other heavy industry crowd the view, showing Wallace residents exactly what the Banners are fighting against taking over their side of the river. Together they created a nonprofit called The Descendants Project to preserve Black Louisianans’ culture. The immediate goal is to stop a 222-acre (89.8-hectare) proposed grain export facility from being built within 300 feet (91 meters) of the Banners’ property and near several historic sites.
“It would essentially pave the way for the whole entire West Bank area that doesn’t have any heavy industry on it to just be industrialized,” Jo Banner said. “We have a lot of heritage and that’s going to be decimated if we get these plants.”
Their sentiments echo those of residents who live in other towns along Louisiana’s Cancer Alley, an 85-mile (135-kilometer) corridor running along the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. It’s filled with industrial plants that emit toxic chemicals, including known carcinogens.
The Descendants’ Project has tangled with Greenfield Louisiana LLC, the company proposing the grain terminal, as well as the local St. John the Baptist Parish Council for nearly two years, seeking to prevent the Greenfield Wallace Grain Export Facility from being built.
The facility would receive and export grain byproducts via trucks, trains and barges. While some town residents support the project, the Banners and other neighbors fear it will eradicate historic landmarks and pollute the area.
“We already have issues with industry from the other side of the river,” said Gail Zeringue, whose husband’s family purchased their property in the late 19th century. “To add to that with a grain elevator is just piling it on.”
The parish council recently rezoned nearly 1,300 acres (526 hectares) of commercial and residential property for heavy industry. Another swath along a residential zone was redesignated for light industry. All the tracts are owned by the Port of Louisiana and have been leased to Greenfield Louisiana LLC.
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