We are taking our film to our nation’s capitol! We have been invited to present the film in Washington DC this September to the Congressional Black Caucus at their legislative conference.
In addition, we've been invited by State Senator Mark Ridley Thomas to screen the film at the California State Legislature.
For a chance to see the film near you check out our schedule here.
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This was the worse situation I had ever seen. I think it wasn’t taken as serious as any other race or population is need. I pray for the city of New Orleans and the people but I know it will all be alright. I just got a feeling that change is coming. God Bless to doers.
This was not racist. This was about profit. In the mid-90’s, the government decided to count people as ‘assets’ and calculate how much taxes we would pay over our lifetime. This mixed with the fact that the US is not a republic, but a corporation traded on the Royal Bank of Scotland makes me release that Bush knew the LA was one of the poorest states and decided it was not profitable to save them. Capitalism at work, people.
I first saw this film at the Sundance Film Festival and was deeply moved. It really opened my eyes to the experience of those that were left behind in New Orleans. Watching this preview brings back the emotions of sadness and anger I still feel about the way our government has responded to this tragedy. I hope this helps bring the ongoing and untold stories back into public view.
The last eight years,our country has ignored the real people and served the wealthy. The Katrina Disaster is disgrace to our government. They bungled 9/11 and let New Orleans and it’s people suffer and they still are!! The War is eating up the money that should be spent in the USA to rebuild & asssit our citizens. Remember, We Need Change and Hope that it comes in November! Don’t forget who is to blame…Vote Democratic!
Though I haven’t seen the documentary, I know that the story is REAL….just a few seconds of the trailer aroused emotions I suppressed. And in a moment I was brought back to tears remembering the day I sat outside the EOC after being told by those left in charge that my parish would not send A bus 30 miles to help with evacuations of “them people”. They only way my parish would help was if they WALKED into the parish and was picked up by our deputies and brought to a shelter. After seeing that the shelter had only two persons (one left within minutes of my arrival), I got in my car, drove through the checkpoints (with some guns elevated) smiled, showed my license and picked up people that made it over and brought them back into my parish. (I found out later that they eventually sent buses) but I can’t erase the memory…because I was “them people”. I remember the detailed story of the 12 year old who cried all day because her 17 year old sister was arrested, she called out of her name, and couldn’t get a ride to a family member who lived in the parish until we created a story to get her out of the shelter. (she being the other person from earlier.) I remember….3 years later….as if it were today.
Bad things happen to everyone all the time. Blame is not going to solve it. A two party system where the one you blame is in office at the time is not going to solve it either. America is dissolving into small factions that want personal concerns addressed and to heck with the country as a whole. We are Americans first, whatever race second. It breaks my heart to see so many people take offense at so many small things and then go on to offend others and not understand why they get offended. We are a people together, we will not be treated fairly as groups or individuals with chips on our shoulders. Each person is where they are in life because of all the choices that they did or did not make each and every day of life. If you make a decision to live in a certain area then you must be willing to be responsible for your decisions. There are so many people that I know that went to help and /or gave money, food, shelter etc. The government is not and never will be the entity to care for each individual person. Somone is always going to get the lowest spectrum of care. As Americans we need to look at less government, less taxes, less restrictions on commerce and free enterprise and get back to a pride in all America, all people. That is why people fight and die to come here, we have the greatest nation in the world. Let us stop taking and start self supporting and giving when our nieghbor needs it. If we rely less on the government and more on each other we will kill two birds with one stone.
All right Wolaverine—we won’t send help when San Diego gets hit with a tsunami or burns down from raging wildfires. You can depend on yourself!
Bush’s governmental response to Katrina was a national disgrace. It was a disaster they knew was coming and chose to ignore. All they want from Louisiana is it’s off-shore oil.
Remember who brought you this tragedy which continues with trailers that are contaminated with formaldehyde. Don’t let McCain continue the Bush policies—Vote for a Change!
swreader
I just returned home from seeing ‘Trouble the Water’ here in LA and I am still shaking. The film put me right in the middle of the Katrina catastrophe.
@Wolverine, my husband and I were under the South Tower when the first plane hit the WTC on 9/11. We soon found ourselves running from the building’s collapse and we were evacuated from our home for more than a month. The government threw thousands and thousands of dollars at us. Literally. There were teams of volunteers sent to each of our buildings to simply record our information and write out big checks. I believe it played out like that because for the most part my neighborhood was filled with affluent, well-educated, politically engaged people. If money is shoved at one disaster, it should be shoved at all of them equally.
I hope this film will be shown nationally not just a few selected locations. Everyone needs to see that diaster from the eyes of those who lived through it. This is a National disgrace. Read the headline The United States of America home of the free, the country that cares for everyon ( that is unless you are poor and black). There were some poor white families that were also left to go under. The United States govement let the insurance companies fail those who did have insurance. These were black and white families and some had money. The govement just failed, that is the bottom line.
Right after the hurricane I was in a certifications class for the railroad. The teacher didn’t attempt to hide his neocon views. He overheard us talking about how the levies had been allowed to deteriorate, etc. He jumped in and said “Oh, if we had a snowstorm here in the building you liberals would probably blame that on Bush too huh?!” How amazingly the sheep miss the point and parrot the “talking points”. Time to get the truth of what happened out asap.
There is no doubt in my mind that Obama will run this country as a direct result of this horrendous debacle. The CANADIAN Mounties and MEXICAN NAVY were in New Orleans before the US Army ever thought about it. BTW, Bush’s governmental response to Katrina was ‘Brownie, you’re doing a heck of a job!’, no wonder the economy as it is now looks just fine to them too.
You miss the point. None of us can rely on the government to fix our problems. The problems that existed in the New Orleans area carried through just like the problems here carried through when we had fires last year. Here all the people that expected someone to come and take care of them got more help from those of us that went out to the shelters and fed and cared for the displaced. The insurance companies and the government fought over who was doing what and if they were qualified rather than getting the work done. Obama is no more going to solve our problems that Bush did. We have to lessen the government and rely on ourselves more. I don’t need your help, I have made sure I can take care of my own needs and I am able to help others when they need it. Stop expecting the government to bail you out!!! Let us focus on keeping more of our money so we can help ourselves, and if you live off the government you are living off me so why would I run to buy you a new house when you are not supporting yourself? Those who WILL NOT WORK SHALL NOT EAT!!! Those who cannot work are the ones I am willing to help. The President is not going to solve your problems.
wolaverine is a Libertarian/Republican or so it seems. All that sounds good but it hardly covers the needs of people who have been consistently screwed by decades of military-industrial-capitalists. They work, they pay tax and get nothing but their children shot up in corporate wars. If there is work people do it. If work is scarce they can not. I have heard this line of reasoning before and it doesn’t take into account the present situation. If you like a neocon-fascist form of government that favors the wealthy and leans on the maxim that they needy are just lazy then you are going to reap what you have sown. Brace yourself, here it comes.
Right, let’s not solve the problem. Give it a name and blame someone. I grew up poor with an outhouse and a bath once a week in a tin tub. We pumped water and heated it on the stove, chopped and hauled wood to stay warm in the winter. I grew up knowing that my future was in my hands. Because of my upbringing I feed the hungry and clothe the naked around me. I am involved with my neighbors. I did it without the help of the government and I never thought to blame them. When Clinton pared down the military and I lost my engineering job he was on TV saying he would get me another one. Right. That did not happen. Who among you gives at least 10 percent of your money away? Who among you volunteers hours each week to feed and clothe people that need help? Or do you expect the Government to do it. Is this Rome??? Do you want more government? Shall we sell our votes for bread??? Or do you eat cake and complain and pretend to bleed for the faceless masses to make yourself feel better? Did you send money to New Orleans?? Did you go there to help?? When the fires came through did you help those out here and are you bleeding for the ones that have to live still in a trailer because they can’t afford to rebuild? Get off your butt and do something.
wolv.:
Sorry you had it so rough as a kid. Thank you for clarifying your position on all this. Thank you for bearing out what I suspected about you. Your heartless view of things, your hint (or claim) that you help the poor and hungry who, in your next breathe, you refer to as too lazy to deserve to eat. If you do this then I applaud you, but NOT your demand to be applauded for it. MY involvements in charities are MY affairs which I don’t use to get praise or publicize for the purpose of advantage in a petty argument. Your mention of Clinton (also very telling) who you blame for the loss of your job because he was trying for something other than a “War Economy”; Your lashing out and making accusatory assumptions about what others with different views might be like all show that I was correct about you.
You could not have seen this movie yet, it has not been released, but you are prepared to disapprove of it and worse, the people depicted in it because you have already decided that they are blaming the government for what happened to them which is largely a fact actually. No I am not talking about the weather, although that is debatable also.
I further expect that you are going to prove to be a bottomless pit of predictable argumentation and if so, I am through with you; not worth the energy. See the movie. You might learn something.
Wolverine,
Simper Fi, San Diego is a nice place for a Marine to retire.
With all due respect, I think that YOU miss the point. Now, I will admit that I am a white trash hill-billy who never once had to chop wood and carry water just to survive. But the way I was brought up was that Matthew 6 (among others) was a good guide and anything to the contrary was bad manner and bragging. (Something about doing your acts of righteousness before men and do not announce with trumpets when you give to the needy; - but I digress.)
Where YOU miss the point is that these people were not relying on the government to FIX their problems. They were relying on the government to DO ITS JOB. When you eat food, or drink water you know that it is safe because the government put safeguards in place to provide a level of safety and protection for its citizens. When there is a fire, you rely on the Fire Dept (government) to come put out the fire. That is their job. “To Protect and to Serve”, isn’t it? The government was supposed to maintain the levies so they would not fail. They knew about the levy problem for 25 years and done nothing.
The people devastated by Katrina ranged from New Orleans’s 9th ward all the way across to costal Alabama and Florida. Some couldn’t leave because they didn’t have a way out; others thought that it wouldn’t be that bad because they’d been through them before. But comparing the scale and magnitude of the Katrina catastrophe to some wild fires is ludicrous. It was really nice of you to help out – that was the Christian thing to do - but don’t break your arm patting yourself on the back next time. 8-)
The reason I think that Katrina will push the election to Obama is because Bush didn’t interrupt his fishing trip with his dad to see why FEMA had its head in its main point of contact for over week. BTW, the reason that San Diego went so well was because of the lessons learned from the government wonks in Katrina maintaining a status quo of “AFU”.
Obama is not a messiah who will solve all of our problems, but the voters have every reason to be mad and to want to punish as many politicians as possible in the elections. The Republicans lost the 2008 elections by the end of the 2nd day of Katrina.
Just one more thing for you to ponder. Have you ever noticed that when a couple of whales get stuck in the ice, the government springs into action to do use every means necessary to help out the animals. Yet when a couple hundred thousand people in an area of the size of the United Kingdom get ravaged by a storm and flooding, the response is like yours, “Serves ‘em right for living in a flood plain”.
If it didn’t hurt to laugh it would be funny.
I feel that with the economy being what it is(Gas and Food, Home foreclosures…), the Presidential Election, War within and outside of the USA, lack of employment - this documentary should be aired on national television. We as concerned and effected citizens from Katrina and other disasters would be more likely to view this than to have to travel to a theatre, pay the cost of gas and concession only to leave the theatre with anger in our minds.
Considering the important upcoming U.S. election, I believe this entire video should be made available to the world ASAP on “You Tube” or here, just as Zeitgheist was.
The producers will have to decide what is more important: the message, or the profit.
This is another reality check for us all that our country isn’t perfect. Yes, I am proud to be an American, but I am not always proud of the way we handle our affairs. I’m tired of the self-righteous feeling that all people need to do is “pull themselves up by their bootstraps” to fix their situations, without understanding why it has been a struggle to do so. Amnesia is the quickest path to our demise - let us all not forget from whenst we came and how each of us does NOT share the same reality in America. Race can always be the easiest reason for why certain peoples are treated in an inferior manner. However, my POV tells a different story. The gap between those that have access to money as opposed to those with limited access to money is widening at an alarming rate. I am not one to “wait” on the government to assist me, although I have fallen on hard times myself. But I do believe that the government has a duty to its citizens - damn near all of us pay taxes, and the poor get hit hard in this area - and America should hold true to its promise. That promise is to protect citizens and care for them in crisis. Katrina was and is a crisis situation and I am saddened to know that the country I love (I wouldn’t live anywhere else) may not feel the same way about me in a crisis such as this.
I am not sure my heart has ever beat so fast in my life…..
I have read most of the posting but unfortunately I was not able to continue the last….I can’t thank you enough for posting your responses and I am not sure if this is EXACTLY the type of dialogue the producers intended to have….BUT PLEASE LET ME CLARIFY….
I intentionally left out detail, but MOSTLY I did not want to RE-LIVE the EXPERIENCES…which for me STILL EVOKE A LOT OF EMOTION….I wish I could FORGET…..
BUT PLEASE DO NOT GET IT TWISTED!!!!!!.....I did not and DO not EXPECT THE GOVERNMENT TO DO FOR ME WHAT I CAN DO FOR MYSELF!!!!...
At the time of KATRINA I worked for NFL players. I organized their personal foundations, helped them develop programs in the community and I was one of the ones WHO HAD A SAVINGS ACCOUNT THAT I WAS ABLE TO LIVE OFF OF FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR AFTER KATRINA while I was out of state and work.
I DID NOT STAY HERE DURING THE STORM and wait to be RESCUED!!!...I EVACUATED the day before and took my family to Lafayette. 15 of us in a two bedroom apt, where I had to watch my parents (one with horrible knees, and the other Fibro…SLEEP on the floor and my mom give up pillows off of the sofa for the young ones while she slept on the springs of the sofa).... - side bar- after what I experienced…I moved to another state and bought a brand-new 5 bedroom house that I rarely see now unless I am bringing up a student group for vacation (I’ve been back in Louisiana since Nov.) and won’t sell JUST INCASE we have to evacuate again and I never want to see my parents on the floor again or us sleeping on top of one another!!!....)
HOWEVER, the day after Katrina hit, my parish lifted the ban and we were allowed back home. I went back to inspect the damage. My parents’ home was ok… We were without electricity…we had water upstairs, but we all were able to sleep downstairs. The next morning when we went to the home my brother and I shared- from the outside it looked fine…just shingles on the ground everywhere. But that wasn’t the case by far. WE literally had to bust the door open, take it off the hinges - THE ENTIRE CEILING HAD COLLAPSED….material right?!....understood. My parents ended up taking my sisters and brothers back to the apt out of town - they couldn’t take the heat, and I stayed behind to help others clean their homes. (DID I MENTION THAT WE WERE A FOSTER HOME….so some of the 15 we had were kids whose families for whatever reasons are unable to care for them)
I am not sure my heart has ever beat so fast in my life…..
I have read most of the posting but unfortunately I was not able to continue the last….I can’t thank you enough for posting your responses and I am not sure if this is EXACTLY the type of dialogue the producers intended to have….BUT PLEASE LET ME CLARIFY….
I intentionally left out detail, but MOSTLY I did not want to RE-LIVE the EXPERIENCES…which for me STILL EVOKE A LOT OF EMOTION….I wish I could FORGET…..
BUT PLEASE DO NOT GET IT TWISTED!!!!!!.....I did not and DO not EXPECT THE GOVERNMENT TO DO FOR ME WHAT I CAN DO FOR MYSELF!!!!...
At the time of KATRINA I worked for NFL players. I organized their personal foundations, helped them develop programs in the community and I was one of the ones WHO HAD A SAVINGS ACCOUNT THAT I WAS ABLE TO LIVE OFF OF FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR AFTER KATRINA while I was out of state and work.
I DID NOT STAY HERE DURING THE STORM and wait to be RESCUED!!!...I EVACUATED the day before and took my family to Lafayette. 15 of us in a two bedroom apt, where I had to watch my parents (one with horrible knees, and the other Fibro…SLEEP on the floor and my mom give up pillows off of the sofa for the young ones while she slept on the springs of the sofa).... - side bar- after what I experienced…I moved to another state and bought a brand-new 5 bedroom house that I rarely see now unless I am bringing up a student group for vacation (I’ve been back in Louisiana since Nov.) and won’t sell JUST INCASE we have to evacuate again and I never want to see my parents on the floor again or us sleeping on top of one another!!!....)
HOWEVER, the day after Katrina hit, my parish lifted the ban and we were allowed back home. I went back to inspect the damage. My parents’ home was ok… We were without electricity…we had water upstairs, but we all were able to sleep downstairs. The next morning when we went to the home my brother and I shared- from the outside it looked fine…just shingles on the ground everywhere. But that wasn’t the case by far. WE literally had to bust the door open, take it off the hinges - THE ENTIRE CEILING HAD COLLAPSED….material right?!....understood. My parents ended up taking my sisters and brothers back to the apt out of town - they couldn’t take the heat, and I stayed behind to help others clean their homes. (DID I MENTION THAT WE WERE A FOSTER HOME….so some of the 15 we had were kids whose families for whatever reasons are unable to care for them)
BUT NONE OF THE ABOVE COULD HAVE PREPARED ME FOR WHAT I EXPERIENCED that FRIDAY!!!!.... I am VERY active in my community.. I VOLUNTEER to coach recreational sports, I was a VOLUNTEER at CHILDREN’s HOSPITAL, Lafon Nursing Home, a volunteer tutor, CHOIR DIRECTOR, Volunteered and Lived in Africa for 2 months, (I wont continue this tirade) I gave more THAN a 10th of my earnings and my time…Not for an accolade or to boast…but because I LOVE GOD with EVERYTHING in ME.….
Sleeping by my grandfather for days without electricity, using ICE at night to cool our feet, waiting in lines for 7 hours in the heat to get in WAL-MART and parking the car in 10 hour lines to get gas (or wait until the pumps were refilled), or the lines for the MREs (Meals Ready to EAT) and ice were NOTHING of a COMPLAINT. Even AFTER going to the Emergency ROOM because my skin reacted in rashes from the overexposure to heat - I still went under the bridge to help the trustees and volunteer fire departments load ice and MREs into peoples’ cars….MY PARISH HAD THE RESOURCES AND THE MONEY….WE WERE GOOD…“well off” if you would say that….BUT THAT BECAME MY ISSUE..
After we purchased a generator on thurday, we for the first night slept with fans. Woke up smiling….While you all were watching it on television, our stations were not up…we couldn’t SEE the CNN…BUT that friday morning I remember waking up and EVERYONE was in the LIVING ROOM LISTENING TO THE RADIO…I received a call from my cousin in TX and she asked me about the buses.
YOU ALL CAN SAY WHAT YOU WANT TO ABOUT NAGIN. HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR THE RE-BROADCAST OF his blowout, WE WOULD NOT HAVE KNOWN THAT THERE WERE PEOPLE STILL IN NEWORLEANS. WE WERE TOLD THAT EVERYONE HAD BEEN EVACUATED THAT TUES AND WEDNESDAY. (when it started leaking in the Superdome) HAD NO CLUE THAT They were still waiting…
I DID NOT THINK IT STRANGE, NEITHER did I HESITATE to go to our EOC and ask for our buses to move towards New ORleans.
Found some history you may enjoy: EMAIL messages…
Sent: Sat, 03 Sep 2005 11:25:39 -0500
Subject: Re: hello
It seems like forever since I have had the opportunity to communicate with the rest of the world. Upon returning to my mom’s house, the phone was working. So I decided to stay when she brought the kids back to Lafayette because they couldn’t take the heat. But of course, the phones stopped working and I could not even send text from my cell. I definitely could not get on the internet, so I have been waiting…..But I have truly come to appreciate the little things that I normally would have taken for granted.
So here is your update. Still no power in most parts, but I am at my aunt and her electricity was restored today. I have been sleeping the past couple of nights by my grandfather. They purchased a generator and we turn on the fans at night. The first night without it - we all were getting up every two minutes for more water and sleeping with ice wrapped up in towels on our heads and feet. I was able to get through two checkpoints to get to your house - God - and I am happy to report that you remain above water and without significant damage. the fence around the jacuzzi? had toppled over on your front fence biut I did not pull into your driveway or go in. Didn’t know if you had set the alarm and have to explain to officers how I wasn’t breaking and entering your property knowing that you all were out of town. Plus it was pouring raining and my moma was scared that the levee would break and didn’t want to go out like that. So we left. Oh there is a huge tree blocking the street, so apologize to your neighbors for me - I had to get through somehow. (didn’t damage anything though)
Haven’t been able to go into the house on estates. Well I have gone twice to take a few pictures - but as fate would have it. I am allergic to the blown insulation and micro bumps now cover my joints and face. Plus the heat doesn’t help the eczema. Nevertheless, my parents once again made the trip to Lafayette to get the kids, so they are back here now. We have electricity in some parts of the parsih and ours should be on soon.
Against all of your wishes, I stayed here. Not sure why. No clue in how to help, but willing. Two things. One I will seriously need your help and everyone elses in accomplishing, but at this point it may already be in progress. Have no idea since I haven’t been able to watch the news.
Has the NFL already set up a relief fund for the victims of the storm. Sincce it was a city with a NFL team, I was thinking that we could coordinate the efforts under foundation. A great way to get the team involved and show that they haven’t completly evacuated the area, they leave behind homes and hearts. If this gets the attention of the NFL, and get players from other teams involved - maybe they can help in signing stuff. I don’t know how many footballs they still have that the entire team signed or if they would be willing to participate. Give me your thoughts.
I am not sure if I will be back here, but where ever I am I will try to get to a computer. I also have a story for you. It will break your heart but at the same time upift your spirit. The tragedy in NO is real. and so many people were affected. I had the opportunity to omeet a couple of them and in the short time they were with me share their story - from attics, rooftops, the convention center, and the highrises. I have stories that would back up Kanye West’s statement and prove him correct. There is just so much and I don’t want to take up too much of your time. They need our help. We need the help.
I know that you are very busy trying to figure out what you all will be doning and where u will bbe going, I do not want to add more work for you or make work for myself. But charity must continue and I would like to help more.
My cell works when it wants. It is not charged, but hopefully soon, we will return to some form of normalcy. - if that it a word.
talk to you soon. I hope all is well,
re
Still not convinced…....
From: “Re ”
Subject: RE: FW: It continues…
Date: Sat, 03 Sep 2005 14:51:47 -0500
It is so hard for me to hear how the media is portraying Kanye West.
He made a comment at an event about this very issue, and his name
dragged because of what he said. I had a personal experience in
picking up several stranded victims and bringing them to shelters
yesterday. One story in particular was given to me by Jasmine, 12
of her experience living through the storm. She first stayed at the Chateau Sonesta - a very high end hotel in the French Quarter where
one of her aunts worked. Her mother and aunt left Sun Morning for
Texas and she and her older sister decided to ride it out at the
hotel. Of course as you probably would expect the flood water began
to rise and they had to flee. They walked in waist high waters up
Canal to the Convention Center. The account she gave of the horrors
within those walls nearly brought me to tears. She said that there
was no food, elec, water. The bathroom didn’t work and those who
went to them were raped in the stalls. She heard the gunshots, and
saw death around her. She and her sister decided to leave and walk
across the GNO (Barefoot in the heat of the day) She told me that
there were bodies of people who made it off the roofs and to the
shelter lying on the bridge and ground swollen. They made it over
the bridge only to be greeted by armed guards with assult rifles and
machine guns (which I personally witnessed in my search for
evacuees) that demanded that they return to the eastbank and that
they could not cross on foot. So they went back. When they got
back to the city, a group of guys in a car asked them if they wanted
a ride out of town. They got in, and when they made it to Jefferson
Parish - they were stopped by policemen. The car was stolen. She
described how the policemen harassed them, calling them “niggers”
and told them that they should have died in the dome. They told
them that they were going to pin the Oakwood Mall burning (of which
I could not see at all from the westbank expressway) on them and
that they would not get out of custody with them. Being 12, they
could not charge her and brought her to my parish Shelter.
(where I found her and brought her by a relative)
My morning began by going to the School Board
office (closed) and then to the Couthouse (emergency unit in the
basement) I was confused about why we were receiving phone calls
that our schools would be reopening in the next couple of weeks, and
our parking lot was full of school busses. I wanted to find out
what it would take to get them to New Orleans in an effort evacuate
those at the dome and CC. To make a long story short, the
spokesperson for the School Board, DF - and others (one of which I went to elementary, middle, high school, and college with and my parents
live in the same neighborhood as) looked me in my
eyes and told me that they had no idea how to contact the
superintendent. And even after I asked if he was going to look me in
my eyes and lie to me that he being the point person could not get
in touch with the head of the dept that could make such a decision
he did it again. I was told that they (the buses) were for the citiziens of the
parish and that such relief efforts were already being made in the
state. He then told me that they had their own system to where
if an evacuee walked some 35 milies from the Dome or CC and made it to my parish- then and only then would they pick them up and bring them to the shelter and
bus them to Thibodaux or another shelter.
I then broke down in the hallway leaving the back room, and
upon exiting the parish sheriff caught me by the arm and asked what
was wrong. He went to school with my mother and knew the family well. After telling him of my mission, he pushed me off on a guy wearing a transportaion badge - whose name I can not call but face I will never forget. But before leaving I explained to him
that while i understood that his first priority was for the security
of the parish, I needed to know who I could speak to about securing
the buses and getting police escorts to the city. He told me that
the state had coordinated efforts and the other parish busses I
encountered going to the courthouse has been ordered by the state to
do so. I asked then for a number for the person coordinating those
efforts and asked why we could not VOLUNTEER as a parish to assist.
He walked inside and left me there with the Head of Transportation
for the parish. He told me that in order to get a bus, I needed to
have a CDL with passenger license - I did not - but asked him that
if I knew someone who did -would they give me one bus. I told them
that I would use my savings to pay for the gas, and if it was
damaged would pay for it. I was told
then that the only person who could give me permission was the
Parish President. And again, he did not have a number to reach him.
I asked him if it was that he just did not want to give the number
to me or if we were in fact in the Parish Courthouse, during an
emergency situation, and he did not know how to contact the Parish
President. Then he told me to go over to the shelter to see their work in progress. But before I left, he was going to run in to get the Parish President on the
phone. He never came back. After more than 30 minutes of waiting
outside the door - he closed in my face, and numerous people passing
asking why I was there, patting my shoulder and ignoring my presence
I walked across the street to the temp. shelter. TWO PEOPLE were
there. And one of them left while I was there. (the other was
Jasmine) But at that time, I was determined to go to New Orleans
and pick them up to bring them into the Parish and see to it that
they kept their word.
The stories are endless. My heart is heavy. there was not one
single black or minority (excluding women) in the entire emergency
unit that I witnessed going in and out that door for more than the
hour I was there. Not one. Because the faces they saw on the media
were not their own, they conveniently chose not to respond and focus
on us. While I understand that we vote them in office to see to it
that the needs of the parish are met, they would not have been at a
severe loss to give me ONE bus that I cried and pleaded for. It is
a difference to want to help and not be in a position to do so, and
to have and choose not to do anything. They were clearing echoing
the words of the Jefferson Parish Police by refusing to rescue
“those people” as they proudly called them in the interest of
protecting their material property.
Did not mean to be so long, but heavy on my heart. Kanye West’s
words and that of what has been stated in this email rung true based
on my first and second hand experiences.
re
SOOOOO, you ask me TODAY, If I am STILL ANGRY….and I can SMILE AND TELL YOU THE TRUTH…..
NO, I am not. What I experienced LITERALLY forced me out of my parish and to another state where I was able to compile ALL the work and RESEARCH I had been doing to CREATE A COMMUNITY CENTER where people can come together ACROSS RACIAL BARRIERS, SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS, RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS….and CULTIVATE GENUINE INTERATION and BUILD LASTING RELATIONSHIPS.
What happened to me, PROVED the need for such and my authenticated my PURPOSE. You are RIGHT Wolaverine about something. ALL OF MY EXPERIENCES, PREPARED me to do EXACTLY WHAT I AM NOW….LIVING.
HOWEVER, I am NOT NAÏVE anymore. My daddy told me NOT to ask for a bus. I thought that as HUMAN BEINGS….created by GOD, first and foremost…that we could SEE BEYOND COLOR, CLASS, and the DOLLAR and HELP THOSE IN NEED…regardless of how they got there….
BUT I will never forget….check the tape…the day I wrote those messages…I had for the first time since Katrina hit – saw the news. And being interviewed was my parish sheriff…I – was not interested at all in hearing what he had to say – UNTIL, he said that “we are doing all we can to help”….we are sending all the guns and ammunition they need to address the problem….Sure, I could spin it however I like….sure, I didn’t hear it in its entirety and it could be out of context….BUT IN THAT MOMENT ALL THAT RAN THROUGH MY MIND WAS THAT “we can send guns to kill them, but we won’t send a bus to save them”.
I was elated to hear earlier this year – from a former school board employee, that my parish did eventually send busses. Whether they were seized by the state or if they decided after I left to volunteer them– I do not know. BUT, what I CANNOT DENY is that what I experienced was NOT just some story. It is TRUTH….one that I silenced for years. And truly a burden is being lifted…
I HARBOR NO RESENTMENT TOWARDS THESE MEN (and woman). I LEARNED FROM RUBY BRIDGES THAT FORGIVENESS IS FOR ME to heal…and I did that. I see them now and wave. I won’t lie and tell you that I don’t remember. It’s just NOT the PLACE I want to LIVE in…. WE HAVE TO MOVE PAST IT TO THE NOW…. And TRUTH IS, that NOW – WE STILL HAVE THE SAME ISSUEs that so many people look over and ignore and BLAME not addressing it because it came from SOME RADICAL, ANGRY BLACK PERSON, or PERSON OF ANY COLOR…
Just like you say that we can’t make excuses for not pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps….WE CAN’T make excuses NOT to acknowledge that for NO OTHER REASON THAN THE HISTORY THAT EXISTS in this COUNTRY that TODAY my BOOTs ARE VERY HEAVY TO STRAP UP for NO APPARENT REASON than my skin is a darker hue.
I WAS BORN HERE, I am just as AMERICAN as the EUROPEANS who migrated here…YET, my HISTORY is TAUGHT SEPERATELY…AS AN ELECTIVE. I am LABELED differently on EVERY STANDARDIZED TEST, CENSUS as a AFRICAN-AMERICAN…not just an American. (though I love my duality) I was NOT taught about African-Americans in NONE of my public schools. Fredrick Douglass and Martin Luther King were taught in the same month (Feb.) at the same time in school – so as a child, I thought they lived during the same period)….IMAGINE how I FELT TO MEET MLKs youngest daughter at church. I had NO CLUE Martin Luther King, Jr. lived during my parents lifetime….(another testament to my parish education system…and I graduated in the top percentage of my class)…..I was in HONORS ENGLISH and NOT A SINGLE BOOK THEY REQUIRED US TO READ WAS WRITTEN BY AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN. (things have changed within the last decade) BUT THE FACT THAT WE ARE STILL HAVING THIS CONVERSATION, LETS ME KNOW THAT THERE IS STILL WORK TO BE DONE…
I know that I CAN”T DO IT ALONE…and AS LONG AS people believe that these ISSUES are just the CRY of the POOR, UNEDUCATED, PERSON OF COLOR…we will stay the same. No matter how hard I try, long I fight, or LOUD I speak, I cannot do it by myself!…BUT I will START WHERE I AM, USE WHAT I HAVE, and DO ALL I CAN!
I KNOW THAT IN ORDER to OVERCOME these ILLS, WE HAVE TO FIRST ADDRESS THEM.
Until THE DAY I CAN SIT DOWN WITH A KLAN MEMBER and HE TELL ME ALL THE THINGS HE HATES ABOUT ME and I tell him all the misunderstandings and pre-judgements I have about him….and we leave the table with a better understanding of one another and at least an agreement to disagree about some things…OUR SOCIETY, OUR COUNTRY, OUR WORLD will never change. (and when I say “I”, I do not mean “me” per say. I don’t wear my feeling on my sleeves and until the day you can call me what you want and I not react….we can say that we are moving in the right direction!!!
Much love to you wolaverine,….for igniting a passion…and KEEPING THE FLAME LIT!!!
And to EVERYONE ELSE THAT COMMENTED!!!
Oh, sorry it took so long…but its out now!!!
Typical Republican/Libertarian ridiculousness from Wolverine… patting him/herself on the back for volunteering and tithing, all the while claiming that the people who need the most help are lazy.
The poorest among us are there not because of “choices that they make everyday” - it’s because of luck.
The luck to be born poor or black or with a single parent. The luck to have a learning disability, or be abused. The luck to have a health problem, an addiction, or an accident. The luck to be laid off, fired or without job prospects. The luck to be old, handicapped, or mentally ill.
The government can’t solve these problems, but it can and should SUPPORT it’s citizens. That’s why we pay taxes. So that there are roads and schools and hospitals and people aren’t dying on the street.
A Harvard economist proved that some form of social welfare is necessary for a society to function. Why? Because of luck. The private sector and the free market can’t take care of people who are stuck in the path of a category 5 hurricane. That is the job of the government.
Republicans are always pointing to Democrats claiming that they want “Big Government”. The FACT is that in the last 8 years government is bigger and more intrusive than it ever has been. It spends more, it has increased it’s payroll, it has expanded it’s scope of responsibilities, it has INCREASED exponentially.
When Republicans aren’t really looking at the facts. They parrot the talking points of Faux News and ignore the evidence right under their noses.
My friend who worked for a law firm in New Orleans got her FEMA check deposited within 48 hours of calling. Her friends who were bartenders and waitresses had to wait months.
Tell me that’s not about race and class. Go ahead. Say it.
Although I have yet to see the film, I too know that THIS story is real – not in simply portraying “the storm” but the inequalities that plague certain communities in our nation. I too feel that the ills in which Katrina revealed is America and we, as a nation, can no longer ignore the reality of social inequity: homelessness, racism, classism, gentrification – to name a few. Gulf Coast advocates are looking for possible “solutions” to rebuilding the Gulf Coast. How do you – those behind “Trouble the Water” and those reading this blog – feel about a Civic Works Project (modeled after the WPA implemented in response to the Great Depression) being part of the solution of enabling more residents of the Gulf Coast to rebuild their own communities and earning a living wage to do so. I am a student organizer for the Gulf Coast Civic Works Project advocating for a bill currently in congress, HR4048: Gulf Coast Civic Works Act. Although HR4048 will serve as one part of the solution in rebuilding the Gulf Coast – I feel that it is a vital aspect in empowering each other and Americans in general to take charge in rebuilding their communities…rebuilding our America. In 1963, from a Birmingham jail cell, Dr. King states the following: injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. My peers and I are excited for the official screening of “Trouble the Water” in San Jose, CA. In response to the third anniversary of Katrina this Friday – 8/29: “Three Years Too Late, Pass4048!”
Just watched the interview on Atlanta’s Fox Five’s Good Day Atlanta…I am glad some one captured the view from inside New Orleans during the storm. Stay strong, keep pushing, hang in there for a few more months…and to those who made it through Katrina…I am not sure if today, the third anniversary, is a day of celebration of life or time to mourn a loved one, but I commend all of you for your love of your city and perserverence!
As a Social Worker in Atlanta I witnessed thousands of individuals entering our area after evacuating Katrina. They were frightened, confused, depressed but thankful for the help offered. I am still affected by the stories I heard from mothers and children. A toddler’s description of a body he saw floating in the water while his mother carried him on her shoulders to safety haunts me. These images continue to come to mind whenever I here mention of Katrina or New Orleans. But my memories are nothing compared to the horrific and enduring experiences faced by the residents. Our government failed. We cannot afford to continue having an administration with the same mindset. Change must occur, for all of us.
I think it is very disgraceful that the filmmakers and producers could not ensure that this film opened today in New Orleans. It smacks of a cultural variation on disaster capitalism in which corporations have been profiteering from the wreckage. When artists use the sights, sounds, and people of New Orleans to promote their own careers, while not making a true and sustained committment to the city, it shows a contempt for the people and situation they portray. Shame on you (all non-New Orleanians connected with the film) today for caring enough to make a movie that will profit you on so many levels but not caring enough to bring it here on the anniversary of Katrina. Remember too that the dead and other potent spirits live here and have a way of calling those who are spiritually wrong to account. Your day is coming for exploiting the suffering and people of New Orleans!
The “Government” that everyone is looking to for a handout YEARS after the hurricane, TOLD you to leave well in advance of the storm making landfall. The people who remained made a PERSONAL CHOICE to stay. Most of the flooding was caused by the broken levees, not the hurricane. It was terrible and I do have sympathy for people who lost everything. But before you start calling me heartless—I let two families stay in my house for months and I managed a Red Cross Shelter (many times for 24 hrs at a stretch, and donated money to the RC—what did you do before you decided to sit in judgement?) and saw a lot a very sad situations. But why were they there? Because they heeded the warnings and got out. Dear God, if people in this country don’t quit crying about the guvmint failing to save them from their own bad choices, we are doomed. There is plenty that administration has done but it’s extremely difficult to save people from themselves. And if you want to complain about formaldehyde, better check your own house. If it was built in the last 20-30 yrs, it has many of the same materials that are used in the trailers—particle board, plywood, etc. Trailers don’t have anything unique—those materials are in your house, mobile home, office, etc. Unless they started hiding those little formaldehyde generators in them, yeah, maybe that’s it. If these people had heeded the warnings to get out, the video would be about, hey, I took responsibility and got out, like we were advised to do. I didn’t sit around and ignore the warnings and them scream and yell when everything fell apart. Look at all the hurricanes we’ve had and show me a population that resorted to looting and constantly blaming the government for their problems. And BTW, if the goverment is so bad at saving you from hurricanes, why would you want to give them more money and responsibility? And the fecaloid tactic of generating so much sympathy for an admitted drug dealer who was probably using a stolen video camera is so shameless that even the most depraved self-promoter would blush at it.
First of all, this is not a discussion forum, please leave comments about the film. Second, the government that “Really?” talks about did not repair the levees as promised. The people who left, did so under their own ability. SO how is someone living in welfare conditions supposed to afford to leave when they can barely aford to feed their kids? It was a calculated attempt to kill people, by not helping when the government could have. Less welfare going to less poor, means more money in the pockets of the rich. How does it feel to have re-elected the man at least partly responsible for 9-11? Lets not do it again.
Katrina and the events surrounding the storm are something I will never, ever forget. I’ve visited NO several times in the past but never knew about the lower 9th ward and other less-fortunante parished. Still to this day, my heart aches just to see how our gov’t treated these people afterward. There is absolutely no reason why NO and surrounding areas, 3 years later, should continue to look as if Katrina happened last week. I hope that this film will come to my area. In the meantime, i’m glad it was shown at the Sundance Festival. The world needs to be reminded how this country choses to take care of other countries and those of a more affluent status.
The real deal for me about this documentary is its assertion that is THE PEOPLE who make real history and who make history/herstory real. Not the detached and selfish elite, but the people in the streets. Thanks Kim and Scott and all who worked to get this message out. POWER TO ALL PEOPLE!
Really?Really? is wolaverine using a new name. Nice try gave yourself away. Still patting himself on the back for his charity while hating the people he is claiming to help who he calls “irresponsible” for not getting out. They were not able to but he doesn’t get that. They didn’t lose everything from a hurricane, they were wiped out by the man-made disaster of government-neglected infrastructure. WHY DO WE HAVE TO KEEP EXPLAINING THIS??
