Here are links to suggested readings. With the exception of the Oxfam report, these are all fairly short articles. Several are from The Nation because it one of the few national publications that addresses social justice issues in Katrina. So for the other side of the debate, I would suggest that you can read just about anything on the Katrina recovery from the New Orleans Times-Picayune, New York Times or the Wall Street Journal.
This early article probably best defines what has become the "African American Narrative" of the post-Katrina recovery: Davis, Mike. Who Is Killing New Orleans? . The Nation. 23 March 2006. Very good on housing discrimination A dissenting view from the mainstream media on the post-Katrina "education reform movement" and the privatization of New Orleans schools through charter schools--written by a former New Orleans teacher. Adamo, Ralph. ""Squeezing Public Education." Dissent. Summer 2007. Accessed 7 August 2008 A succinct summary of the issues surrounding healthcare for the uninsured "Deadly Choices" article was cover story for New York Times Magazine. Though the article does not mention the race of the medical staff or victims, the medical staff involved in the alleged killings was white and most of the victims were African American. It is a very long article but a good discussion question is why did it take four years for this story to be told and why no prosecutions? Lance Hill Commentaries, 2005-2012 These are short commentaries relating to Katrina written 2005-2012 and disseminated by a listserv and several New Orleans publications. You can either view it in chronological order in a pdf here or on the original form on the Internet Archive here. A brief summary of the "aversive racism" theory which can be used to explain the behavior of many local whites in the post-Katrina recovery, i.e. their indifference toward--or support of--policies that discouraged the return of black communities, such as plans to demolish black neighborhoods; lack of affordable housing; firing of all 5,000 black teachers, etc. I don't agree with the author's remedies, but the analytical framework is helpful for understanding the behavior of liberal whites in a disaster setting, and speaks to what we have to protect against in the future during natural or human-made disasters or economic crisis. The aversive racism theory suggests that indifference is not, in the traditional sense, the "absence of feeling," but rather inaction based on unconscious devaluation or dehumanization of others. For an article on the problems facing the New Orleans schools transformation: Waldman, Amy."Reading, Writing, and Resurection," The Atlantic For praise of charter schools: For a report on the problem of unqualified and/or inexperienced teachers in New Orleans: "No Experience Necessary: How the New Orleans School Takeover Experiment Devalues Experienced Teachers." June 2007. Accessed 7 August 2008 For an example of the advocates of privatization of schools and a shift from veteran African American teachers to outside-recruited teachers, see: Hill, Paul and Hannaway, Jane. "The Future of Public Education in New Orleans" 11 January 2006. On impact of state takeover of the school system, see: Quigley, Bill. "Fighting for the Right To Learn," Counterpunch Affordable Housing Shortage: Chart of Fair Market Rents Comprehensive study of Racial and Class Dimensions of Housing: Brown University Study on Race and Class Post-Katrina On The Homelessness Crisis: NY Times Article about Homelessness Problem in New Orleans Plans to rebuild New Orleans by demolishing most of the African American neighborhoods: The “greenspace plan”: Bring New Orleans Back Commission. “ Action Plan for New Orleans: The New American City.” 11 January 2006. For articles on the race and class based obstacles displaced residents face: Quigley, Bill. "Eighteen Months after Katrina." Truthout. 27 February 2007. On the white social and economic elites' plan for New Orleans, see Cooper, Christopher. "Old Line Families Plot Return," Wall Street Journal Quigley, Bill. "Half of New Orleans's Poor Permanently Displaced: Failure or Success?" Truthout. 6 March 2008. Article on the historic role of the hereditary elite in New Orleans politics: Powell, Lawrence. "A Concrete Symbol." Southern Exposure. Spring 1990. Dr. Clark Interview on Lance Hill Transcript of Interview of Lance Hill on Hurricane Katrina and Racial and Class Equity Issues. January 26, 2008, WTUL-FM. Interview by Brian Denzer. Paul Kadetz interview of Lance Hill, 2008 (8 hours) - Stream Online | Download Part 1 | Download Part 2 | Download Part 3 "Let Me Down Easy, Boys: Murder and Lawlessness in A Small Town" by Cindy Schott "The Education of Lance Hill," Gambit Magazine, July 6, 2004 Script for “Signpost to Freedom: The 1953 Baton Rouge Bus Boycott” |
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