Lower Ninth Ward

After 10 days away and another 3 getting readjusted to Boston, I'm ready to do a little blogging. While Boston was dripping with cold rain last week, I spent my time visiting a friend and traveling around warm, sunny Louisiana and Texas. I know we'll have our day in the sun in less than a month, but it was fantastic to wear shorts and a t-shirt all day everyday for a week. The warmth, friendliness, and honesty of people down there was equally charming. Almost everywhere I went I was greeted with a smile and a mild surprise that I come all the way from Boston.

One of my most memorable interactions, though, was at the start of my trip at the Louisiana State Museum in Baton Rouge. While waiting for my friend to pick me up, I got into a conversation with the police officer on duty. At some point I asked where he was from and he replied, "New Orleans. The Lower Ninth Ward." He's been living and working in Baton Rouge since Hurricane Katrina forced him to leave home, but he's in the process of trying to pull together enough money to rebuild and move back. One of the factors working against him - and others in the same predicament - is the way the federal government has been assessing grants for rebuilding. He explained that even though there is approximately $150,000 available for each home to be rebuilt, the Feds reduce the size of the grants depending upon other income sources. For example, if an evacuee has received $50,000 from an insurance company, that much is deducted from the federal grant. If that evacuee has received another $500 for food, that much more is deducted from the grant to rebuild. This assessment/deduction process goes on and on until there's little or no money left for someone to rebuild fully. According to the officer, this has happened to thousands of people, leaving them stranded where they are and unable to rebuild. Adding insult to injury is that one local state representative's efforts to pass a bill that would tax the money recipients received to rebuild! When I asked him a second time if it was a Louisiana representative trying to push forward that measure, he replied with an emphatic yes.

It was an incredible to hear how unjust the process of receiving a federal grant is, particularly when contrasted with how calmly it was all explained. This man didn't look or sound defeated by the process; instead he just seemed very used to having to explain what was going on over and over. He encouraged me to go down to New Orleans to visit the Lower Ninth Ward - which I was planning to do anyway - and followed up the suggestion by saying "Boston belongs to me as much as New Orleans belongs to you." He went on to say that there's no reason this country can't afford to rebuild New Orleans if we can pay billions to fund a war overseas. I agreed and took my leave when my friend arrived moments later.

That officer's words stuck with me throughout the trip. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to visit New Orleans until my last day down South, but it was worth the journey. Driving into the city, you'd never know Katrina had been so devastating. We drove down I-10 and entered the city near the universities. I'm not very familiar with the layout of New Orleans, but we began our visit to the city by driving down the streets that have streetcars still running on them. The houses and mansions along those streets were gorgeous and everything looked like it was cut out from a magazine on fine Southern living. After a quick lunch, though, we drove across the Industrial Canal and headed into the Lower Ninth Ward.

Upon first glance, the area didn't look that different from anywhere else in Louisiana. There was traffic, small businesses, and single family homes. It could've passed for the Southern version of Roslindale if I had to make a comparison. But, once we turned off the main roads and headed deeper into the  neighborhood, that's when things really looked different. We visited the area where Brad Pitt's organization has been working to help with the effort to rebuild figuring there would be a lot of activity happening. On the contrary, most of the area had practically nothing. No houses. No trees. No cars. No people. There were some slab foundations still in place and a few partially rebuilt or newly built homes in place, but the vast majority of the area was a field with waist-high grass. The magnitude of the devastated area is broader and wider than I understood. Even in the places where some houses had been rebuilt, they are surrounded by empty shells or nothing but vegetation. We could have been in a small town if we didn't know that it was the middle of New Orleans.

After walking around a little, it was encouraging to see some young volunteers set up at a house, although they honestly reminded me of backpackers at a youth hostel in Asia. I wouldn't have been surprised to smell banana pancakes cooking as we walked by. One group of older people also drove through, but they were on a tour of the area and never got out of the van. It's a shame knowing that our government has done so little to help, but it's also encouraging to know that there is a grassroots effort to rebuild. One man we spoke to said that Sean Penn was in the area lending a hand and that he's had buses full of students from universities in Boston, Providence, California, Hawaii, and dozens of other places coming to lend a hand. He also explained how Brad Pitt's organization works and said that many houses have been built, although there were three times that amount left to build. As with the officer I spoke to in Baton Rouge, he encouraged my friend and me to continue telling the story of what's going on in New Orleans and thanked us for stopping by and talking to him.

I know that my words and photographs won't do much at raising awareness of the situation in New Orleans. However, at the very least I wanted to honor the requests of the men who asked me to tell their stories and remind everyone that in this political season who you vote for matters far beyond what their pastor says, who their spouse cheated with, or their age. For some people, the change in administration could mean a significant improvement in their lives. Remember that we're voting for someone who has the responsibility to improve the lives of everyone in this country, not just their own supporters. We all have a stake in overseeing the growth and development of healthy communities nationally, not just in our own backyards.

Comments

[massmoga]

thanks for your photos and this essay on your personal experience visiting the lower ninth ward. I have found that it is a very difficult place to see- to appreciate the scale of destruction, to acknowledge the trauma of lost lives, and to see the emptiness that is there today. those building foundations feel like tombstones and the open landscape a battlefield cemetery. there is an incredible sadness there. and anger at the government's response, federal, state, and local.

at the same time, people are curious. visitors and tourists from all over the world, seeking to see the place made most famous by the television coverage about hurricane katrina and the flood. it is an odd sensation, to see people taking photos out of cars and buses. and, as you note, many new orleanians are very upset about this type of "safari" picture-taking and disaster tourism. these people may be trying to learn something or to understand what happened. but they may also just be drawn to look. what I wonder, do they see? and how do they tell the story? who is doing the interpreting and what do they say? how is it different from what one sees on his or her own, walking, talking to people, returning to the same site over time?

I am conscious of and concerned about these questions, as I too am drawn to look. and to investigate. I hope that I can produce something positive, be part of something that facilitates and encourages good planning and development. and to tell stories that reflect the complexity of the place, and how it has changed and developed over time.

I have been working on a research project and photo documenting the changes to the neighborhood since january 2006. I'd be interested in your reaction to these images, which I have just recently organized together as a "set" on flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mogaphoto/sets/72157605772848842/

best wishes,
steve

[Milwaukee Roofing Help]

very interesting read, the roofing industry down there is just as busy as anything else, the whole situation is just sad though. So many lives ruined.

[Karen]

To bad you didn't travel where my home and dreams are still in ruins.

[3D]

I'm thinking about going back again after a year to see how things have/haven't changed. If you tell me where your location is, I can try to visit.

[forestry trucks]

There is a big difference there. people dont realize what all is involved when you update and remodel your home.