OFF THE WIRE
Motorcyclists in Louisiana score a big win! Efforts of motorcycle
rights advocates paid off when the Louisiana legislature approved a law
exempting “persons driving or riding a motorcycle” from the state’s anti-masking statute. (See Louisiana State Legislature-HB161)
The
Louisiana House passed HB 161 on a vote of 95-0 on June 5th, 2017
following a mass majority approval by the state Senate on May 30th,
2017. The legislation is on its way to the Governor’s desk.
The MPP reported in November of 2016, (See “Bikers Arrested for Wearing Bandanas”, November 29, 2016) following a trip to Louisiana as a guest speaker at a Louisiana
Confederation
of Clubs and Independents (LCOC&I) meeting, that motorcyclists
wearing legal helmets were being arrested for violating a state
“Anti-Masking Law” originally intended to deter public acts of terror
being committed by the KKK.
This obvious abuse of
Louisiana statute was being used as a tool to profile and target
motorcyclists, particularly in the Shreveport area.
The
MPP provided a legislative proposal to Louisiana ABATE and the
LCOC&I advocating an amendment to Louisiana’s anti-masking law
exempting individuals wearing state approved safety gear while riding
their motorcycles for the 2017 session.
Louisiana
motorcyclists followed through and successfully lobbied their
legislators proving that grassroots political rights movements can be
effective and achieve results very quickly when mobilized and organized.
The MPP congratulates and commends these efforts because they serve as
an example and a model for other states attempting to combat motorcycle
profiling and discrimination in all of its various forms.
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