Katrina's Hidden Race War

CHECK THIS OUT!!!!!!!!!

The Nation has a new investigative report out that is frightening. It states that white vigilante justice tore through New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina... but no official investigation has ever examined the crimes.  Apparently, in the weeks following Hurricane Katrina, White vigilantes hunted down Black men who entered Algiers Point and even tried to expel their Black neighbors. Yet, even with evidence, Louisiana's broken law enforcement agencies have refused to investigate these crimes!  

Seriously. In the two weeks after Hurricane Katrina made landfall, the media created a climate of fear with trumped-up stories of Black lawlessness. Meanwhile, an armed group of White vigilantes took over the Algiers Point neighborhood in New Orleans and mercilessly hunted down Black people. "It was great!" said one vigilante. "It was like pheasant season in South Dakota. If it moved, you shot it."  As one African American victim tried to escape the vigilantes, he heard them yell, "Get him! Get that nigger!"  The man managed to get away.  Two other black victims were told by their assailants that they would be allowed to live on the condition that they told other Black folks not to come to Algiers Point. 

Here is the main article.

Here is an editorial on the subject.

Here is the tragic story of the murder of Henry Glover, 31.

Here is the Democracy Now! segment on this topic.

In the following video, reporter A.C. Thompson talks with innocent victims and ruthless vigilantes about his expose on shootings of black New Orleans residents fleeing the city in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, and police misconduct after the storm:


Here is the reaction to this story by Congressman John Conyers.

This is an incredibly important, depressing and tragic story that should make anyone interested in justice angry. This needs further and formal investigation. To DEMAND JUSTICE, please go here and sign the online petition.

And, most importantly, SPREAD THE WORD.

Lest We Forget... Katrina Three Years Later

Please take some time away from the presidential election to reflect on the memory, meaning and ongoing tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, three years later. here are a few resources:

Magnum Photo reminds us what happened three years ago with a powerful photo essay.

Over at DailyKos, Bill in Portland Maine has put together "the Hurricane Katrina Hall of Shame." Well worth this walk down memory lane.

American Public Radio's "Speaking of Faith" put together a great audio story, with lots of resources, on poverty after Katrina.

Bill Quigley explores the "pain index" in New Orleans three years later.

Larry Blumenfeld writes about music, culture and recovery in New Orleans.

Kai Wright, in "Katrina, the Ultimate Party Crasher," reminds us how far we have yet to go in bringing back one of our nation's most beloved cities.

Lizzy Ratner explores the way New Orleans has redrawn the color line after Katrina.

Deepa Fernandes writes that three years on, homelessness looms for many of Katrina's victims.

Fernandes also writes about FEMA's toxic trailers.

Stuart Klawans reviews the new Katrina documentary, "Trouble the Water," a film which prompted N.O. mayor Ray Nagin to walk out.

Black Agenda Report suggests we are in "the age of Katrina," not the age of Obama.

Here is a will.i.am-style Obama video using New Orleans great, Alain Toussaint's, classic, "Yes We Can Can":

Katrina's Children

Recently, Spike Lee and Soledad O'Brien gave a group of kids in New Orelans cameras and asked them to record aspects of their lives, post-Katrina. The resulting stories illustrate the heartbreak and tragedy of this ongoing disaster, but also the beautiful persistence of life and love.

To check out the article and watch some of the kids' stories, go here:
Katrina's Children

Ten Lessons from Katrina

This essay, by Bill Quigley, comes from Blackagendareport.com In the intro to the piece, Quigley writes:

The hi-speed catastrophe and no-speed recovery of New Orleans has provided us with unwanted lessons about the nature of the U.S. regime and the criminal class in power. The besieged citizens of the city have, by necessity, become thoroughly politicized, as they cling to home and hearth by their fingernails - while a great Diaspora languishes in scattered patches of the American vastness, internal exiles. Those who remain have undergone a crash course in what it really means to be a citizen of a country that respects only money. They have learned the imperatives of activism, self-reliance, and leadership-creation from the ranks.

Here is the full article:
Bill Quigley, "Two Years of Katrina: The Ten Most Important Lessons Learned"