Ted, I put "reasons" in quotes because I don't believe they're valid reasons. Many blacks think they have reasons to believe they are being driven out of New Orleans, but I think most of those reasons are invalid. It doesn't matter how tough life is for some of them, because if the goal is racial reconciliation, we need to find real solutions, not excuses.
When has racism not become a reason? And why do you think that could not be a reason to drive blacks out of NO? Racism is what helped form this country and is the basis on which so many decisions are made.......where people live, whether they will take mass transit or not, what schools they will send their kids to, where they will shop, what clothes they will buy etc. Its not the only factor but its an important, contributing one.
Everyone knew that NO's levees were only good for a CAT 3 hurricane. So why did we leave the third largest seaport in the US and a major oil producer so vulnerable? Were NO Beverly Hills I can assure you those levees would have been built to CAT 5 standards. Why is the ninth ward in the lowest part of the city, the most vulnerable for flooding? Why has so much industry moved from NO to Houston? Why did the South have the most liberal city annexation laws in the country? Why has Hotlanta fallen behind Charlotte as a banking capital for the South? It should be Atlanta but it isn't........after all, Atlanta has more people and more industry. Why?
Racism is a way of life in this country........so much so, we don't even realize why we make the decisions we do and don't realize how much of those decisions are based on race. And its not just whites vs people of color........even whites are not born equal in this country. A few years ago they did a survey and people were asked to rank ethnic groups by their European origins........the whitest of the white European descendants were at the top of the food chain and the darkest of the European descendants were at the bottom. In other words, if there were no people of color in this country, there would be a pecking order among whites. Racism is alive and well in this country.......always has been but hopefully, at some time in the future, it won't be.
Back to NO..........the levees weren't built to a CAT 5 level because in part NO is mostly black. NO lost industry to Houston and other cities because in part, those cities are more white. Whites moved to NO suburbs because in part too many blacks lived in NO. The response to NO after Katrina was slow because in part NO is black. To try to make believe that race is not a factor in any of those decisions is foolish and naive.
Nagin is rushing people [read black people] back into NO because possession is 9/10s of the law......and he knows it. He's heard the stories about a city revival; about speculators already moving in to take over NO property. He knows this nation has been shamed into rebuilding those levees up to a CAT 5 standard and when that happens, white business will feel more comfortable in NO. And that will make whites more comfortable in NO. He knows that there are plans afoot to level the 9th ward and turn it into more affluent housing [read for whites] after the levees are rebuilt to a higher standard......and he's trying to make sure blacks get a piece of the action. Unfortunate for him, too many blacks don't understand what's about to happen and are walking away from their homes.
So why do you think racism has nothing to do with everything?
ted |
