Katrina Stories

A year after Hurricane Katrina swept across Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, leaving devastation in its wake, most notably flooding to 80% of the city of New Orleans, only about fifty percent of the displaced and widely scattered residents of that great city have returned and much remains to be done to rebuild the entire Gulf Coast.

Through a sampling of news reports, here is a snapshot of where things stand:

As could be expected, the psychological toll on victims of the worst natural disaster in the nation’s history has been extensive. A survey of affected residents finds a drop in suicide rates, however the long-term impact may be considerable.
Post-Katrina Suicide and Mental Health Study
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President Bush and his entire administration have rightfully been criticized for their slow response to the disaster and the inept way that FEMA in particular has handled the situation. A year later finds the president taking another photo-op through the region. In an election year, opposing Democratic politicians are also stopping by.
Politicians Make an Anniversary Driveby
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The issue of how New Orleans will rebuild and who will ultimately live there is a particularly thorny one. Black residents are suspicious of what they believe to be a land grab by White real estate developers hopeful of redesigning for their own interests districts that were previously inhabited by mostly poor Black people. Plans to bulldoze public housing projects without a clear strategy to resettle displaced tenants is being met with opposition.
NAACP Opposes Demolition of Public Housing Projects
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Everybody is trying to make a buck off this disaster somehow.
Katrina Commemorative T-shirts for sale
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Some are taking full advantage of other people’s misery.
Rebuilding and Ripoff for Mississippi Katrina Family
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New Orleans has always been synonymous with music. When Katrina hit, many of the city’s top performers, some of them nationally-known figures, were forced to flee to safety, the same as everyone else. Many of them also lost everything they owned. But an effort is underway, spearheaded by their fellow musicians, to provide them with new homes and a new neighborhood.
Musicians Village welcomes displaced artists
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Robin Roberts, anchor of ABC’s “Good Morning America,” is a native of Pass Christian, Mississippi, one of the areas hard hit by the hurricane. For her this has been more than just a news story.
Pass Christian, Miss., Home of GMA Anchor Robin Roberts
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Gambling has managed to bring people back to other parts of Mississippi. Casinos, that provide the foundation to an otherwise struggling economy, have reopened and with that, brought a measure of hope.
Casinos bring tourists, jobs back to Gulf Coast
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Hurricane Katrina did more than flood a region and destroy property. It exposed some of the ugliest secrets about the priorities of this administration and issues of race, class and economic inequity that are endemic to this country. So what have we learned in the past year?
When Government Shrugs
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