Swift’s Eras Tour sparks controversy over homeless evictions in New Orleans

Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is making its way to New Orleans, Louisiana, over the weekend of Oct. 26. Swift will be appearing at Caesars Superdome. In light of her visit, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, R, is evicting nearly 75 homeless people living on the streets near the venue.

They have until Thursday, Oct. 24, to leave the encampment or state troopers will force them out. New Orleans city officials and homeless advocates have called on Gov. Landry to stop the sweep.

The city’s director of Homeless Services & Strategy, Nate Fields, argues the removal of unhoused individuals should be a fair and honest process, saying, “This is not the way to make a positive change.”

“Why are we hiding our homeless population?” Fields asked. “I don’t care about the Taylor Swift concert. I care about every individual who stands behind me, who lives out here every single day.”

The city’s Homeless Services Department claims it has helped house nearly 600 homeless people since last year. The city says re-homing unhoused individuals takes a lot of time and trust, and just moving these people to other parts of the city will only make the situation worse for New Orleans residents.

New Orleans City Councilwoman Lesli Harris said in a statement that many people living in that homeless encampment have completed their paperwork and “were set to be housed in a matter of weeks. Now, displacing everyone, likely to private property in surrounding neighborhoods, will make outreach nearly impossible.”

The governor’s office released a statement saying: “Governor Landry understands the No. 1 issue facing the city of New Orleans right now is the homelessness crisis, and he is working with LSP and local officials to fix this problem. As we prepare for the city to host Taylor Swift and Super Bowl LIX, we are committed to ensuring New Orleans puts its best foot forward when on the world stage.”

Swift takes the stage starting the night of Friday, Oct. 25, in New Orleans’ Superdome, with performances Saturday, Oct. 26 and Sunday, Oct. 27 also planned.