Tuesday, August 30, 2005

The people left behind are Black...

New Orleans is approximately 67% black. I had a conversation with Jada Renee about the situation in New Orleans. On Thursday, August 25th the white hotel owners told their guests they should evacuate New Orleans because they were expecting that Hurricane Katrina would be catastrophic. Many of the black inhabitants of New Orleans were not told until Sunday, August 28th that they should evacuate. Those that could afford to leave left the city. But many people were too poor to leave the area. They either didn’t have the money for gas, or their vehicles were too old to even attempt to leave town. So many were stuck in spite of the warning to leave particularly those who live in the 9th ward. The lower 9th was among the very last of the city's neighborhoods to be developed. It is very African American and very poor. The people that were left in this ward didn’t even have enough money to go to the superdome to seek shelter from Hurricane Katrina.

In 1965 Hurricane Betsy devastated the 9th ward. In addition, according to Jada, City Officials opened up (blew up) the levees and sacrificed the 9th ward to prevent flooding in other parts of the city. Trying to verify this information has proven very difficult, as it appears someone is trying to cover up this openly racist and hostile act upon the inhabitants of the 9th. As I was speaking to Jada, the inhabitants of the 9th were trapped while the floodwaters have forced them to the rooftops. The communication in the city is non-existence as there are no landlines and the cell phones are not working either. No ones know if these people are being rescued as I write. The order from the Governor to evacuate said they were going to evacuate the people in the superdome and other rescue centers. Have these people been rescued from their rooftops in the 9th ward?

The unfortunate souls that were left behind found themselves in the position that they had to take basic supplies such as water, diapers for their babies, and food because they were trapped in a city with no way out and no other recourse to obtain these supplies. It's hot, there's no electricity. Water is everywhere, but it's contaminated. Everyone should know that New Orleans is a swamp, for these people to venture out to get supplies in the flood waters, they were doing so at their own risk. The waters are full of poisonous snakes, alligators, and not to mention with all of this standing water the mosquitoes pose a serious health hazard because of the West Nile virus.

There are over 1 million people that evacuated New Orleans who are now refugees in other cities and states because of the devastation left behind by Katrina. What will become of the people that went to Baton Rouge, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, etc? Baton Rouge is one city that I don’t think will be able to accommodate the excess of people. This whole thing was so poorly organized and wreaks of out right racism I feel like screaming…

I am so depress now, because this was my home and people have lost everything...
posted by Cynthia   Permalink| Comments(8)|

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