Day Three - Race, Poverty, and Hurricane Katrina

I must say that today's class brought me to tears a little bit. I didn't totally cry...I mean I'm a MAN! Ha ha at least I like to think I am sometimes. But in all seriousness I don't think I have ever been so moved by any movie after watching today's third act. Seeing the destruction and sadness today was unbelievable. The reaction of the old lady after seeing her house and the mother’s tears after burying her daughter literally brought me to tears. 

  However, my blog/rant today is going to respond to your own rant Dr. Parks and a response to the last person, Rob that made a comment about your blog. Now I know I said some things in my last couple blogs but I have learned a bit more on this Katrina situation and I have developed my own opinion on certain aspects of Katrina and I'm not holding back my true feelings on this one...

I completely agree with your reaction to Rush Limbaugh's comments on the comparison of Iowa floods to Hurricane Katrina. He really is a racist SOB!. Now I'm not saying you think Katrina's problems have occurred all from race but I don't think the race card should not be thrown out there sometimes and it kind of bothers me to be completely honest. I think people need to understand that it is an economic issue before a race issue. The only reason it seems like a race issue is because the majority of the poor in this country are black or a minority. I cannot defend FEMA, the Feds or even the local authorities of New Orleans, if you do you are crazy. But I think some of the explanation for the terrible preparation, warnings and evacuation for this disaster is because of the fact that New Orleans is a fairly poor area. There was a mandatory warning on television and I’m assuming radio. Well, considering most people in the NOLA area (especially outside of the French Quarter) cannot afford a television or even a radio. Please tell me, how are they going to be notified about the seriousness of the disaster? I agree that the people of New Orleans should have been forced to leave. But that's like saying these people don’t have a choice; its like taking their fundamental rights away that is given to them by the constitution. They can stay or go, don’t make them. Local authorities should have gone door to door begging for people to leave their homes. But if they didn't, so be it. Those people have close roots to their city, their families and to their community. It is understandable that they would not want to leave.

Anyways, it’s a shame that the government didn’t care so much to immediately come and help the stranded victims. But I personally believe this and I hope you understand that it was not because they were mostly black. Its because they were poor, or not wealthy or not considered “exceptionally productive people to our society” (that's not my opinion, but from the government's prospective you're darn right that's how they feel about some of the people in NOLA) . If it was Bill Gates or Warren Buffet drowning FEMA would have been down there in a heartbeat. But the fact is that most of these people that were stranded didn’t have a good education (if any), didn’t have the resources to just get up and go, and nearly all those people just didn’t want to leave the city they grew up in. So saying people were warned in advance is true, but you have to understand the economic situation these people were put in to begin with before you say that these people should have left.

People have a tendency nowadays to blame a lot of bad things that happen to black people in this country on race or discrimination. Well the fact of the matter is since the start of blacks in this country, they have always had some sort of social issue. First, it was obviously slavery, then it was the civil rights movement and now we have gotten to the point where the racism, discrimination, and segregation in this country has gone nearly unnoticed or has become barely visible. I personally think after watching this film it seems like that because of the main stream media and the Federal government hiding things and making things look better than they actually are.

But anyways, a reason a portion of African Americans in this country are underprivileged is because of their history of struggle and fighting “the man”. “The Man” is the Government and the rest of society putting them down for what ever senseless reason. If slavery and the civil rights movement never occurred then there obviously would be no race issue and black people might have better opportunities in this country. There has always been a struggle for black people and that's the case for all minorities too; Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and now more recently Middle Easterners. But black people have a rich history of being discriminated and segregated. So there is no wonder why black people in certain areas of our country are struggling. They have never been completely accepted in society and I don’t know when or if they will be but let me tell you this; What we are dealing with is our country’s history biting our own a** right now. Society and the Government nowadays don’t believe in slavery or segregation and FEMA didn’t take their sweet a** time to aide the people of NOLA because they were black. We have come too far as a country to once again say our government and our people are discriminating against black people. I will never believe that. But I will believe that the Bush administration has been a colossal disaster and I think that Hurricane Katrina is what did him in for me and many other Americans (not to mention 9-11).  I agree with someone who responded to your blog, Rob, kids who are born to two loving parents and have a good education have a strong future. But unfortunately based on our history we haven’t allowed that opportunity for black people. So when people want to say the victims were being treated like animals because George Bush hates black people or the Federal Government is racist; I'll tell them to stop and think rationally about the situation and tell them that it is about the current struggle in the economy for African Americans mixed with our countries terrible history of discrimination and racism. We call slavery and the Civil Rights movement history for the simple fact that it is in the past now and we have moved onto to do greater things as a country. We have taken too many steps as a nation for anyone to believe that this terrible circumstance occurred because of the color of people's skin.