Pryor comments on proposed maps

Today, Dec. 1, Indiana House Republicans released their proposed new congressional map hours before the House is set to convene for an extra session. After months of pressure from Washington D.C., the new map draws Indiana’s two congressional Democrats out of their seats. 

State Rep. Cherrish Pryor (D-Indianapolis), House Minority Floor Leader and a member of the House Committee on Elections and Apportionment, issued the following statement: 

“After months of having to guess what the newly gerrymandered map proposal would look like, we finally have it. Let me tell you, it’s even worse than I imagined.

“Marion County has been split into four separate districts. Part of my district has been lumped in with Newton and Jasper counties in Northwest Indiana. Slivers of Indianapolis are attached to districts that reach all the way down to the Kentucky border, right across the river from Louisville. 

“Make no mistake: this map seeks to silence Black voices. Marion County, the most diverse area of the state, has been split up so that we have no representation. The last I checked, we are still expected to pay taxes. This nation fought a war to end taxation without representation only to turn around 250 years later and oppress their own citizens in the same way. 

“In no way do Hoosiers benefit from this cracked map. How can congresspeople be expected to advocate for the needs of their district when the communities they represent are so far apart? House Republicans are focused on pleasing Washington and maintaining control, because they have failed policies and are clueless about how to help Hoosiers with the high cost of living they have created.   

“While minority communities have been deliberately targeted, all Hoosiers will suffer from this gerrymandered mess.”