Down in the Bayou

Prop2 (originally posted September 26)

When the water evaporates, when the fires are extinguished, and real estate is rebuilt; after American citizens return home to Louisiana and Mississippi, what does the future hold? Trust is very fragile. In the eye of the storm, citizens of New Orleans were confident their local, state, and federal government would help them. Why would they believe anything different? When the towers fell in New York City… wait maybe that’s not a good example. NYPD and FDNY as hard as they did try, were unprepared, ill-equipped, (malfunctioning equipment) and misinformed (some information that a huge plane is heading toward your city) in their attempts to save lives, (still no one knows what really happened). Well at least, the mayor of New York, no… all he did was walk around with a construction hat on and called it helping the people, (looked more like a contractor looking over what to do with newly cleared property). Well at least they can expect some type of substantial relief, although that has yet to be seen. 9/11 families have yet to see any significant compensation after losing loved ones. I’m using the towers falling in New York as an example, when this country had to defend itself, more so its citizens, we become expendable, with no explanation. What makes the events in La so deep; there was no bomb threat, a plane flying into a structure, nor did two 80-story buildings collapse. Mother Nature kicked the hell out of America. The only thing our government had to do was perform. When it our government can not, does not perform, simple questions like, who, what, when, where, why, and how, must be answered

Well the “what, when, and where” are simple, at the end of the month of August, a huge hurricane nearly wiped an entire US city, New Orleans, LA, off the map. In an effort to save lives, the local and state governments attempted to evacuate its citizens. However, some decided to stay behind. During the six days before “help” arrived, the city of New Orleans had to fend for itself, looting and all. When it all was said and very little done, Why didn’t they leave when they were told? Flat out, most people could not, Black and white alike. Most of these people had not left the neighborhood let alone the city. Generations occupied some of those houses; the house itself is an heirloom.

History lesson:
What is the significance of these actions, or lack there of happening in Louisiana? Well, Louisiana is the home of segregation. 1890, Louisiana passes a law that requires Black Americans to ride in train cars separate from white passengers. Six years later, Plessy v Ferguson (1896), the Supreme Court legalized segregation.

In the birth place of segregation, the world saw the lasting legacy of a problem that has NEVER been solved; only pacified. Integration laws, “Black faces” managing companies, holding positions in government in addition to amassing wealth through other means (mainly entertainment), affirmative action, and other forms of “hand outs,” dampen the desire and the need for change. Instead everyone(NAACP, The “new” Black Panther party, Urban League, the Nation of Islam, all Christian groups, all fraternities and sororities, Robert Johnson, Deborah Wright (Carver), Russell Simmons, and any Black business owners) sits back and expects our Government to save the day. How can the government help you when don’t care to help yourself? Individually, many gave generously and continue to help out, but why continue on your own? Has it ever dawned on anyone that these individuals can create for New Orleans collectively? Provide for these displaced families collectively? Wait, I forgot, those days are long gone. So to all companies and individuals donating to Katrina relief… Donate, by all and any means donate. But when all resources are collected, who is going to have the finally say over your money and what it is used for? How much juice do you really have?