Ongoing Recovery after Katrina

With any disaster, part of the problem with recovery is that it takes so much money and effort, but part of the problem, too, is that it slowly loses media attention. I've been seeing some follow-up stories after Katrina, and thought I'd compile them here, for your general reading interest.

First up: Slate explains how planning is going on Missippi's Gulf coast. Turns out that while it will be difficult, it's not going to be half as hard as New Orleans, thanks to the fact that much fewer people were involved and a lot of them didn't have to relocate to very far away.

In New Orleans, the story is not as simple to relay. Officials are revealing the big recovery plan in sections, one day at a time. The first part of the plan: neighborhoods need to band together to prove that they're viable. Otherwise, residents will be paid for their houses and expected to settle elsewhere. Total cost: $17 billion, mostly for the buyouts. The Boston Globe's take: "New Orleans rebuilding plan yields bold ideas"

On Yahoo News, "Katrina Victims Angry at Recovery Pace" tells the story of Katrina survivors living back in New Orleans, waiting for strong support to kick in. A salient quote: "One simple measure is house trailers. The Federal Emergency Management Administration promised 120,000 of them for people who lost their homes to Katrina, but FEMA data show barely 26,000 are occupied in Louisiana, fewer than 4,000 of those in New Orleans."

The question that arises is, is race a factor in the slowness of the recovery process? My guess is that it is, only in the sense that it shapes all the other problems and considerations--the same way that race is related to bad schools, for example. It's not a direct and causal link, but the history of the place and the people casts long shadows and makes bouncing back harder. Racism, slavery are what led to the black people of New Orleans living in the lowest, most dangerous neighborhoods. But is there still racism holding them back? Hard to say. And when you've been waiting for drinkable water for four months, it's hard not to lay the blame there. Here's an article from MSNBC: "Katrina victims blame racism for slow aid"

Also, here's the website for an organizing agency with a Katrina Survivors Association. It seems to be the largest nationwide organization for survivors, with about 2000 members (Wikipedia)ACORN

I think that's enough from me for now. I just hope that good things can come out of this disaster, and that opportunities won't be squandered. Keep it in your prayers, if you're the prayin' type.