Sherman Copelin

Sherman Nathaniel Copelin, Jr. is a New Orleans based politician and businessman.

Copelin, the son of a funeral director, was born in New Orleans. He graduated from St. Augustine High School and then became active in student politics at Dillard University, where he became student body president. He was hired to serve as an aide in the administration of Mayor Victor Schiro in 1968. In the 1970s, he emerged as one of the leaders of the black political organization SOUL (Southern Organization for Unified Leadership) alongside Don Hubbard. SOUL's effectiveness in rallying the support of African American voters for candidates like Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards and New Orleans Mayor Moon Landrieu made him a powerful figure in New Orleans and Louisiana politics. In the 1970's Copelin headed Superdome Services, Inc., a politically connected company contracted by the Landrieu administration to provide janitorial and security services for the new Louisiana Superdome. Scandal emerged when Copelin was accused of receiving payoffs from companies seeking to obtain contracts from City Hall.

In 1986, Copelin was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives, representing a district which included New Orleans's Lower Ninth Ward. He became one of the most prominent members of the state legislature, serving as speaker pro tempore. Success in business dealings led Copelin to move to Eastern New Orleans outside his district. The residency issue became an issue in his re-election campaign, and he was defeated in 1999 by Rev. Leonard Lucas.

Copelin ran unsuccessfully in the New Orleans mayoral election of 1994.

Copelin is currently the head of the New Orleans East Business Association, and since Hurricane Katrina has publicly opposed the construction of new apartment complexes in New Orleans East.

Sources

Bridges, Tyler. "Bad Bet on the Bayou: The Rise of Gambling in Louisiana and the Fall of Governor Edwin Edwards." Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2001.

DuBos, Clancy. "SOUL on the Ropes." "Gambit Weekly". March 20, 2001. [http://www.bestofneworleans.com/dispatch/2001-03-20/politics.html]