Residents, activists and church leaders ask the appeals court to stop industrial development, protect burial sites and establish air monitoring and buffer zones for impacted areas.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans is set to hear arguments in a civil rights lawsuit alleging a south Louisiana parish engaged in racist land-use policies that placed polluting industries in majority-Black communities.

The lawsuit comes as the federal government has taken steps during the Biden administration to address the legacy of environmental racism.

A 2023 lawsuit by Black residents in Louisiana’s St. James Parish sought to link land-use policies with “Racial Cleansing.” Their appeal could keep the case alive.