Funeral services Saturday for noted civil rights lawyer Lolis Edward Elie included a traditional second line and jazz funeral procession.
Elie, a lawyer and leading figure in the civil rights movement whose clients included protestors, lunch counter sit-in participants, Freedom Riders and Black Panthers, died Tuesday.
A funeral mass was said Saturday morning at St. Augustine Church in Treme, followed by a traditional jazz funeral procession. Mr. Elie was buried in St. Mary Cemetery in Carrollton.
In its obituary, The New York Times called Elie "an undaunted civil rights pioneer whose advocacy as a lawyer, protest organizer and negotiator helped propel the racial desegregation of New Orleans."
He is survived by his son, Lolis Eric Elie, a journalist and screenwriter; a daughter, Dr. Migel Elie; three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
- Video by Neil Giurintano, WWL-TV