Rosalind Magee Peychaud (born 1948) is an American politician and community leader. She served as a Democratic state representative for Louisiana’s 91st District from 2002 to 2004. In 2009, she was appointed deputy chief of staff for U.S. Representative Joseph Cao, a Republican representing Louisiana’s 2nd congressional district, where she worked in the New Orleans district office.

Early life and education

Rosalind Magee was born in 1948 in

Monticello, Mississippi Monticello is a town in and the county seat of Lawrence County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,571 at the 2010 census. Geography Monticello is in central Lawrence County, on the west side of the Pearl River. U.S. Route 84 run ...

. Her father, James H. Magee Sr., was a deacon at Oak Grove Missionary Baptist Church and passed away on September 18, 2002. Her mother was Marion Magee. Peychaud has two sisters (Catherine Magee Thompson and Regina Magee Hudson) and a brother (James H. Magee Jr.). Peychaud earned a Bachelor of Arts in Educational Psychology from

Jackson State University Jackson State University (Jackson State or JSU) is a Public university, public Historically Black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Jackson, Mississippi. It is a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and ...

and later obtained a Master of Social Work from

Tulane University The Tulane University of Louisiana (commonly referred to as Tulane University) is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by a cohort of medical doctors, it b ...

NDF and other involvements

Peychaud serves as the executive director of the New Orleans Neighborhood Development Foundation (NDF). She is also a member of the Affordable Housing Advisory Authority for the

Federal Home Loan Bank The Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks, or FHLBank System) are 11 U.S. government-sponsored banks that provide liquidity to financial institutions to support housing finance and community investment. Overview The FHLBank System was chartered by ...

of Dallas. She is a member of the New Orleans City Planning Commission, the Neighborhood Conservation District Committee (NCDC) of the City of New Orleans, and the

Crescent City Connection The Crescent City Connection (CCC), formerly the Greater New Orleans (GNO) Bridge, is a pair of cantilever bridges that carry U.S. Highway 90 Business (US 90 Bus.) over the Mississippi River in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. The ...

Oversight Authority (CCCOA). NDF was established in 1986 and also had offices in

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city sits on the Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana), Pearl River and is locate ...

. A distinct focus of NDF in New Orleans is the area now known as the Hoffman Triangle. On June 20, 2009, when the Neighborhood Conservation District Committee (NCDC) deliberated on two properties owned by

Joseph Cao Ánh Quang "Joseph" Cao ( ; ; born March 13, 1967) is a Vietnamese Americans, Vietnamese-American politician who was the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 2009 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party (United ...

, Peychaud recused herself from the vote due to ethical considerations.

Hoffman Triangle

Peychaud coined the term "Hoffman Triangle" during her service in the Louisiana House of Representatives. She based the term on the name of the John W. Hoffman Elementary School at the corner of South Prieur Street and Third Street, within the Hoffman Triangle. The Hoffman Triangle was, in Peychaud's own words, an area of intense "trash, drugs, and blight" in the inner city of New Orleans. Conditions there naturally worsened during and after

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

in 2005. and they continued to concern Peychaud when she served as a panelist for the Third National Summit on Equitable Development, Social Justice, and Smart Growth in 2008.The conference, which occurred in New Orleans, was on the theme "Trends to Watch"; Peychaud was in the session title
Innovations and Inequities in Gulf Coast Recovery.
/ref>

BOLD political organization

Peychaud was part of the reform wing of the Orleans Parish Democratic Party and often clashed with William J. Jefferson and his

Progressive Democrats The Progressive Democrats (, literally "The Democratic Party"), commonly referred to as the PDs, were a conservative liberal political party in Ireland. The party's history spanned 24 years, from its formation in 1985 to its dissolution in 20 ...

. In a district previously represented by Jefferson’s ally Renée Gill Pratt, Peychaud won a special election on May 4, 2002, defeating Jalila Jefferson-Bullock (one of Jefferson’s daughters). However, Jefferson-Bullock defeated her in the general election on November 15, 2003. In the 2006 Democratic primary for Louisiana’s 2nd congressional district, Peychaud backed Karen Carter Peterson against Jefferson. When Jefferson won the Democratic primary again in 2008, she and several other prominent Democrats supported Republican Joseph Cao, who went on to defeat Jefferson in the general election. Peychaud and the Jefferson family have had a long history of political rivalry. This has often put her in alignment with figures such as Karen Carter Peterson, James Carter (no relation to Peterson),

Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson (January 17, 1936 – June 26, 2024) was an American politician who served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1994 to 2002 and on the New Orleans City Council from 1990 to 1994, 2002 to 2006, and 2007 to 2 ...

Cheryl A. Gray Evans Cheryl Artise Gray Evans (born 1968, New Orleans, Louisiana) is an American lawyer and politician. She represented District 5 in the Louisiana State Senate prior to her resignation in 2009. She formerly served in the Louisiana House of Represen ...

Stacy Head Stacy Aline Singleton Head (born June 30, 1969) is an American lawyer and former president of the New Orleans City Council. Early life and career Stacy Head was born in 1969 as the daughter of the former Katherine Hamberlin and Ernest Lynn Single ...

, and Helena Moreno.

Personal life

Rosalind Magee Peychaud is married to Joseph Ernest Peychaud, a descendant of Antoine Amédée Peychaud, originator of

Peychaud's Bitters Peychaud's bitters is a bitters distributed by the American Sazerac Company. It was originally created between 1849 and 1857 by Antoine Amédée Peychaud, a Creole peoples, Creole apothecary from the French colony of Saint-Domingue (now Haiti) who ...

. Rosalind Peychaud, a Baptist, is a virtual

teetotaler Teetotalism is the practice of voluntarily abstaining from the consumption of alcohol, specifically in alcoholic drinks. A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler (US) or teetotaller (UK), or said to be ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peychaud, Rosalind 1948 births African-American state legislators in Louisiana 21st-century African-American women politicians Baptists from Texas American community activists Jackson State University alumni Living people Democratic Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives Politicians from Jackson, Mississippi People from Monticello, Mississippi People from Tyler, Texas Politicians from New Orleans Tulane University alumni Women state legislators in Louisiana Baptists from Mississippi Baptists from Louisiana 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American women politicians 20th-century American women politicians 21st-century members of the Louisiana State Legislature