For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Scott Ploof, CEO and Publisher of Big Easy Magazine. I’d like to take a moment to tell you a little bit about myself and then tell you what inspired me to launch Big Easy Magazine, the online home for progressive New Orleans.

I was born and raised in Ponchatoula, 50 miles north of New Orleans. Throughout my college career, as the President of the college democrats, I was heavily involved in advocating for economic and social progress. I’ve marched, I’ve written, I’ve called, donated, and played a role in the campaigns of progressive candidates.

At the age of 23, while pursuing my master’s degree, I decided to run for state representative as the sole Democrat in my house district in an effort to affect social and economic change. Upon graduating from college with my MBA, I started a career serving veterans at the Department of Veterans Affairs. I’ve been in New Orleans for 11 years now.

While I’ve never considered myself entitled – I grew up in a trailer in a small town with parents who were striving to simply make ends meet to put food on the table – let’s face it. I’m a white male in a white male patriarchal dominated society inherit with prejudices against other minorities and people of color. My white privilege enabled me to achieve success in certain areas that sadly would probably have been much more difficult if I had been a minority.

Last year, in the aftermath of a shocking Trump victory and with all the division across the country, I decided to launch a progressive media operation with a few close friends of mine. Soon to be known as the online home for progressive New Orleans with an unapologetically progressive, uniquely New Orleans brand, we covered issues such as race, environmental, economic and social injustices, and progressive lifestyle and culture in New Orleans. Recognizing how my privilege in society helped me to get where I am today, I decided to pour a large portion of my own personal finances back into this startup with the intention of fighting the systemic racism, classism, and other issues that affect those who aren’t born with privilege.

Over the last year, my team has poured their heart into covering issues that matter most to New Orleanians, and I’m also grateful for the readers who have made this operation possible. Without you, we would have nothing.

In September 2018, we broke our first story related to the mayor of Kenner’s ban on Nike products at city recreational facilities. This story made national news. Throughout the year, we have covered many more important issues including criminal justice reform and marijuana legalization, and we’ve spotlighted progressive entities that have lived and breathed progressive values. We’ve unearthed social and economic injustices that would have otherwise been overlooked or unexposed.

If you were looking for a local, independent media outlet uninfluenced by corporations that provides free objective information to its subscribers, here we are. We truly want to remain New Orleans online home for progressive New Orleans, but we need your help to do so.

At this time, we need to raise $10,000 to continue paying our writers, and to hire a sales staff in order to generate revenue to break even on a monthly basis.

At this time, my team and I am pleading with you.

Donate today so that Big Easy Magazine doesn’t simply become a fleeting memory in New Orleans history. Instead, help us to ensure that Big Easy Magazine becomes a progressive icon for this city and an inspiration for the expansion of local progressive independent media across the nation.

We’re here to serve you. But we need your help to stay.