Posted by Dinah on September 9, 2008, at 13:20:00
In reply to Re: An end to brutopia?..ALL » obsidian, posted by Jay_Bravest_Face on August 29, 2008, at 23:08:54
> Just look at what happened (or didnt) in New Orleans: most of the people who lost everything where poor, black people. If that had happened in Kennebunkport, the whole city would have been rebuilt in a week.
The storm was an equal opportunity destroyer. Along with the lower ninth and Eastern New Orleans, some of the hardest hit areas were affluent Lakeview, and working class but overwhelmingly white St. Bernard Parish. I know a heck of a lot of people of every race and every income bracket who lost everything they didn't have with them in their cars. And even if they had insurance and perhaps some other resources (although most of the middle class claim their home as their largest investment), they were hurt badly financially.
I imagine Kennebunkport is significantly smaller than N.O. So maybe it could have been rebuilt by now. The extent of damage here and the number of homes flooded was almost incomprehensible. Between Louisiana and Mississippi it's measured in the hundreds of thousands of homes.
To really get an idea of the scope of the disaster:
http://www.nola.com/katrina/graphics/flashflood.swf
Do you know the population loss in St. Bernard Parish? And how little Lakeview has bounced back, despite the affluence of the people who lived there?
It's true that wealthier people of all races had more access to funds in the form of flood insurance, and had more ability to sell and move or restore.
The most resilient community was actually the Vietnamese community in Eastern New Orleans. But that too had nothing to do with their race, and also had nothing to do with wealth. It's an inspiring story.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19292199/
New Orleans was a multilayered and complex tragedy. It shouldn't be reduced to an example of racial inequality because that's not what it was.
poster:Dinah
thread:848866
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20080728/msgs/851175.html