How do we describe the second anniversary of Katrina?For many in New Orleans and the outreaching areas as the now famous saying goes, “it is what it is”. It also “was what it was”.
It was a community flawed.It is a community that must be better.
It was a people that gave up on hope.It is a new world that hope must survive.
The Katrina anniversary reminds us that none of us are immune from total destruction of families, of institutions, of neighborhoods.
It reminds us that we can debate for infinity over what went wrong, but our real goal right now is to find a way to make things right.
Katrina anniversary harkens us that we can never be what we were, but hopefully we can build better upon what was.
As the bells ring that remind us of the broken levees that washed away our past, we long that our future is secured so we never relive the present.
This day comes once per year and it is indeed special.For tens of thousands, it was ground zero in time and place.As each day fades, our memories weaken but hopefully not our determinations.
All of us have fallen.Thousands have lost the people we have loved all of our lives.They can never come back but their legacies will never be washed away.
We can do as many are asking for us to do.We can continue to overcome all obstacles, help ourselves without looking for a helping hand.But, hopefully the world will wisely realize that we come to them not as beggars but as symbols as the strongest and truest form of American spirit ever envisioned by our founding fathers, and their generations of children who made us who we are today.
As we think back and grieve and think with hope in our hearts, let us thank the millions who have found strength in their own souls to aid us during this awesome time of need and want.They are the true heroes for their souls are full of compassion, they comprehend loss and they have helped empower us with opportunity.
Katrina was the past, the present and the future.It is time, even for just a day to put aside our differences.We are all brothers and sisters of the storm.The fractured houses of hatred matter little when we work together to build our internal and collective homes.
Of utmost, today is the day we should and must hold each other so dear.All we have is ourselves.If we have not that, we have little.
Bayoubuzz Note: Please discuss below what this day means to you. Best wishes to all...
Steve,good article i agree with we don't need no celebration or memorial i see it every day, to all my fellow katrina victims trust God he'll never let you down.
Written by anthony
on 8/29/2007
The Groundbreaking ceremony for the Katrina Memorial at the Charity Hospital Cemetary was quite moving. Mayor Nagin, General Honore, Coroner Minyard and others truly framed the continuing struggle and the aspirations for emergence -- provided we are not forgotten by state and federal elected officials.
Written by bradgouno
on 8/29/2007
Hey, Rich, let's all try to get along - we New Orleanians shouldn't be having arguments with each other - we've all had a rough couple of years, Man. I live in your neighborhood, too (I love Lakeview), and I'm almost back in my house. I got an SBA loan, too, but I'm still waiting on Road Home (they're absolutely terrible). HOWEVER, I make considerably more money than the average New Orleanian, especially once you take my wife's salary into account, so I CAN'T IMAGINE what it would be like to try to rebuild if my wife and I didn't have the financial resources that we have. You've got to realize that we're not all coming at this with equal footing, here. For the person earning average or below-average pay to try to come back and rebuild is much, much, harder than what I imagine you or I had to go through - especially if they (like me) haven't gotten a dime from Road Home yet. I'm not saying you're rich, or that it's been easy for you (I know it hasn't been), but if you lived in Lakeview prior to the storm, the neighborhood did have a higher than average per capita income, so you probably weren't hurting.
Written by Tee Dub
on 8/29/2007
Why must we always choose sides and break arguments and simple COMMENTS down to US against THEM. Speaking specifically of New Orleans, unless and until we come together as a group of people (citizens) and do something to make this work, our future looks bleak.
Let's all admit, there are and were problems that existed before Katrina. Crime was and is out of control. There were and are those who want handouts as opposed to working or earning. And while we admit that, let's also admit that New Orleans had a great cultural and economic disparity prior to the storm that did not necessarily exist because people didn't want to work. Who you know was always important. What you could do was in many ways was dictated by your relatives and friends and even the area where you lived. Yes, nepotism existed and really reigned in New Orleans.
I do not highlight these points for purposes of having a reason to complain and moan. I state these points in hopes that we will all have compassion for our fellow New Orleanians. I don't know your struggles NOR do you know those of your neighbor. Things are not always what they appear. So don't be judgmental. We can not succeed by ourselves, believe it or not, WE DO NEED ONE ANOTHER.
Just some thoughts to ponder.
My prayers are with all who were and are effected by the Hurricane Katrina.
Written by Mofromno
on 8/29/2007
To the Ninth Ward (Warrior ???)
My name is Rich; it has nothing to do with financial assets. Pre-Katrina the family home had no mortgage, now it does, through the SBA. Road Home didn’t begin to cover our losses, but we’ll recover. Our ability to qualify for a loan was not a birthright; it was earned through 45 years of labor and financial responsibility. I apologize for none of that.
If you see pride in accomplishment as gloating, I can’t help you. I mentioned nothing about anyone being lazy or hopeless, but, if I struck a nerve, perhaps some self-evaluation might be in order. Pride is not narcissism, if you think so, your mind was numb long before you read my comments.
But you go ahead and sit there and put me down. Katrina has probably given you another in a long list of excuses for what’s wrong with your life. I’ll keep going forward with mine. You want my respect, earn it by doing not by complaining.
Written by Rich
on 8/29/2007
Thanks, Steve, for a very thoughtful and thought-provoking article. My heart goes out to everyone who is struggling to rebuild New Orleans amid ongoing hardship. Every person I know who has been affected by this disaster has worked tirelessly to put their lives back together, and the sheer stress of it all – both cumulatively speaking, since the storm, and on a day-to-day basis – has taken years off their lives. No doubt, part of that has also been watching family and friends depart permanently. It’s great that some people were able to rebuild quickly and get their lives more or less back on track after the storm. On the other hand, there are scores of others who did not have enough personal savings or access to loans to rebuild immediately, and they have had a devastating time of it. It’s sickening to see gloaters boast that they’ve rebuilt their homes, and then glibly muse that that somehow makes them inherently superior – as if anyone who hasn’t yet rebuilt and ‘gotten over it’ is lazy or hopeless. That just betrays a glaring streak of narcissism and a mind-numbing lack of sensitivity. I hope that soon the passing of August 29 will see New Orleanians showing a little respect for each other’s experience as we remember the day that rocked our world.
Written by Ninth Ward Warrior
on 8/29/2007
PAX VOBISCUM!! Some would ask what these words stand for? They are Latin for peace be with you. Today as we remember (not celebrate) the second anniversary of Katrina, we wish that this could be spread from every home and every neighborhood in this city and all the areas that were affected by that storm. However, when we read the news and see it reported in various ways, we see that the peace we all seek will be long in coming. Yet we still believe that in unity will come strength of character to overcome the tragedies that existed before and after Katrina. Today we lay the blame of our present state on all people who have failed to demand leadership on all levels of government that would help all people of this area and other areas affected by devestation. We saw the inherent decay of this great city before Katrina and we we see the physical decay after Katrina. The worse, frankly, was the decay that existed before - the decay created by basic lack of standards, etc. Today, we pray that we can still see the new Nouveau Orleans, where all citizens will stand together with determination to create rather than to destroy. Once peace prevails then the physical city of New Orleans can be rebuilt. PAX VOBISCUM!!!!!
Written by
on 8/29/2007
Right on all points. It takes a LEADER to stop the war and Louisiana AND New Orleans is lacking in all of it's leaders. Just as a parent raises children, children look up to their parents who set an example, and learn by WATCHING. Just take a ride through the streets of New Orleans on ANY given day at ANY given time. All you see are the "sorry, jobless, lazy, dirty, and greedy "Citizens of New Orleans," waiting for a handout. You can see why the city is not back and NEVER will be back. EVERY porch step "stoop" is occupied by numerous lazy black men that SHOULD have a JOB, children that SHOULD be in school, and women who SHOULD know better. However, the government keeps feeding the hands that are out while starving the tax payers that are law abiding, tax paying citizens. Until the "FREE DOOM" (yes doom like in doomsday) train passes thought the City instead of stopping on every STOOP, the city AND state will never change and criminals will rule while visitors and businesses "Pass you by." Good Luck New Orleans. Good Luck Louisiana in choosing the right man to lead the state.
Written by Allie
on 8/29/2007
PAX VOBISCUM!! Some would ask what these words stand for? They are Latin for peace be with you. Today as we remember (not celebrate) the second anniversary of Katrina, we wish that this could be spread from every home and every neighborhood in this city and all the areas that were affected by that storm. However, when we read the news and see it reported in various ways, we see that the peace we all seek will be long in coming. Yet we still believe that in unity will come strength of character to overcome the tragedies that existed before and after Katrina. Today we lay the blame of our present state on all people who have failed to demand leadership on all levels of government that would help all people of this area and other areas affected by devestation. We saw the inherent decay of this great city before Katrina and we we see the physical decay after Katrina. The worse, frankly, was the decay that existed before - the decay created by basic lack of standards, etc. Today, we pray that we can still see the new Nouveau Orleans, where all citizens will stand together with determination to create rather than to destroy. Once peace prevails then the physical city of New Orleans can be rebuilt. PAX VOBISCUM!!!!!
Written by
on 8/29/2007
Rich & Glenn - You could'nt have expressed it better! All this moaning, groaning, and poor me, has got to end, or my "NEW NIGERIA" expressions will become reality! People have got to get off of their "Red Beans & Rice" filled butts and go to work or there won't be a city to come home to. Crime is such a huge problem it's any wonder why that anyone would want to come back home, except the murderers and drug dealers. "The city burns while Nagin fiddles"! Sad, sad, sad!! PATRIOT WARRIOR.
Written by PATRIOT WARRIOR
on 8/29/2007
I don't see the need to celebrate, memorialize or have anniversaries for a disaster. Part of the problems with this city is that most of its residents relive the past and bemoan the present. You can move on from the problems of Katrina, but not by waiting for someone else to do it for you. You can fix the problems of corrupt and inept politicians, but not by voting strictly along party lines, racial lines, or by saying your vote doesn't matter and not bothering to vote. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about Katrina, how can you drive anywhere in the city and avoid it. Those family and friends lost are never far from my thoughts. I will visit their gravesites on their birthdays and anniversaries not on the dates of their deaths. The family home in Lakeview was severely damaged. Family and friends gutted the house and cleared the area. SBA made us the loan and the house was repaired. Eventually road home money was received, but not until well after we were back in Lakeview.
Get over it, don't celebrate or meMORIALize it. Don't bemoan it, attempt to fix it.
Written by Rich
on 8/29/2007
Unfortunately, this aniversary reminds me of the total ineptitude of our local and state government officials who were more concerned with politics than doing what was right and expedient. Prime example, Mayor Nagin busy having lunch and talking about the mayors race on Friday instead of realizing the critical situation we were facing. I think it shows that New Orleans is one step above a thrid world country. Then we have a governor that needs 24 hrs to ponder her decision to let the federal troops come in due to possible political ramifications! Its an absolute shame that so many people lost their lives because of lack of leadership and intelligence. This non sense that we didn't know where the storm was coming is really laughable. Any person that looked at the map on Friday and saw the storm covered a majority of the Gulf of Mexico should have had a wake up call, The fact of the matter is that our officials disregarded numerous calls from federal officials warning them the magnitude of this storm. Pray for the lost souls!!!
How do we describe the second anniversary of Katrina?