Seeking the truth about New Orleans and Gulf Coast reconstruction

Please remember Greg Peters, respected member of the New Orleans blogging community, in your thoughts and prayers.  Greg will be undergoing open heart surgery soon.  Contact him at greg at suspect-device.com if you would like to help him get a laptop so he can continue to work while recuperating.

Wishing you a successful surgery and speedy recovery, Greg.


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U2 and Green Day will showcase a pre-game concert at the SuperDome tonight on Monday Night Footballas the New Orleans Saints and their fans will again reunite on home turf.

Clearly there will be many viewers that will sentimentally cheer for the Saints. We shouldn’t  blame or criticize any one for that. Falcon’s fans will still be behind their team. And that is okay too. The ultimate outcome is less important than the means that brought us to this game. Nearly $175 million was spent on the renovation and the game tonight and the season will again bring fans and tourists to New Orleans. According to ABC News, for many that participated in the renovation, it was more than just a job.

“This isn't just a paycheck. The roofers — who called themselves the Krewe of Roof — finished 45 days early. The city celebrated when the last piece was installed. Roofers don't ever finish early.”

According to Yahoo, The two bands will perform a new version of The Skids' "The Saints Are Coming." It will be played for the first time tonight in New Orleans. The  Hurricane Katrina charity single was recently recorded by U2 and Green Day. The bands also recreated the Beatles' infamous "Abbey Road" album cover. The performance and cover are intended to aid a fundraising effort in New Orleans, for musicians affected by last year's devastating storm in the region.

Proceeds from their cover song "The Saints Are Coming" will go to Music Rising, the hurricane charity initiative launched by U2's The Edge.

“A drowning sorrow floods the deepest grief
How long now
Until a weather change condemns belief?”

Lyrical wisdom from a 1978 punk tune by Scottish band The Skids.

Take the time to read a compelling story of the horror Katrina brought to a New Orleans family and their hope to make New Orleans their home again. The revival of the SuperDome has become a symbol of hope and a focus for a community that has lost nearly everything.

From a story at ABC News: To Hell and Back: New Orleans' Rebirth in the Superdome

His parents passed in the months following Katrina.

“……..Over by the side of the house, closing up the side door, he's stopped cold. There, in what once was the carport, mixed in with the toxic mud, are small pieces of his parents' lives. Six decades together, and this is what's left: his mama's church hat, battered and forgotten. A high heel shoe. A belt. A work boot. A few medicine bottles. Faded pictures of happier times. He makes believe he is ignoring them, trying to mitigate the pain. The neighbor's house has moved into their lot; he tries to ignore that, too.”

The rebuilding of the SuperDome (NOAA photo) has so much meaning to the citizens of New Orleans.

"When people come in here and see what's been done in less than a year's time," says Doug Thornton, general manager of the building and the driving force behind its revival, "they are going to say, 'If the Superdome can be rebuilt after that tremendous destruction, my house can be rebuilt, my neighborhood can be rebuilt and my city can be rebuilt.' So much of this recovery is about confidence and belief. You've got to want it to happen. You've got to believe it. This is symbolism."

"This is not just a rebuilding of a stadium," architect Paul Griesemer says. "This is the image of rebuilding this city. This community. And people just want this to be successful beyond belief. Everyone from our construction manager to the guy who is just laying down the epoxy floor, everybody wants it to be so perfect on September 25, when the world comes to New Orleans' door. They want people to think that we are gonna fight to bring this town back."

I know everyone loves football and maybe the return of the New Orleans Saints will bring press focus and dollars to the embattled New Orleans economy. However, I hope the commitment, the hope, the money and the effort that brought the Saints marching back to New Orleans will also find its way to the people of New Orleans, their homes and their lives.

The Louisiana Superdome, a lingering symbol of Hurricane Katrina's devastation, will host its first NFL football game since the storm tore through the New Orleans area in August 2005.  The badly damaged venue was not used during the 2005 NFL season, but has since been repaired.

Yahoo! Sports has a good preview of Monday night's primetime game between the New Orleans Saints (2-0) and the visiting Atlanta Falcons (2-0).

For many in New Orleans, the revitalized Superdome (or "Sacredome," as some have called it) stands as a symbol of the city's post-Katrina renewal.  For the first time in Saints history, all home games have been sold out by season ticket holders.

I will wear black and gold (the Saints uniform colors) on Monday to show my solidarity with the people of New Orleans.  I hope you will, too.

Thanks to Mallory of MissMalaprop for permitting me to re-publish a recent post of hers here.  Mallory writes about independent artists and businesses, both in New Orleans and around the world, as well as eco-friendly and sustainable products.

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http://marketumbrella.org  (includes the Crescent City Farmer's Market and Festivus, the holiday market)

http://www.art-restoration.com/bam/index.htm   Bywater Art Market

http://www.midcityartmarket.org/   Mid-City Art Market

http://www.gretnafest.com/  Gretna Heritage Festival

and of course, since I'm a member:

http://www.neworleanscraftmafia.com   The New Orleans Craft Mafia

At NOLA.com's Point of View, David Crosby shares "Six things not to say to a Katrina survivor."  Crosby is a senior pastor at the First Baptist Church of New Orleans.

Here is Mr. Crosby's list of 6 things to avoid saying to Hurricane Katrina survivors:

1. "Hey, why don't you guys clean up this mess?"
2. "When my neighbor's roof sprung a leak, we all pitched in and fixed it."
3. "If you think this is bad, you should have seen Blanktown after the tornado."
4. "It's been a year. You need to get over it."
5. "God's not through. He's gonna wipe y'all out next time."
6. "Say, could I get your picture standing on what's left of your house?"

Thanks to Mr. Crosby for explaining why such remarks are so offensive.

No matter how well-meaning, those not from the New Orleans area must keep in mind this point from Mr. Crosby: "Outsiders may not realize how familiar residents of New Orleans are with our own failures -- before and since the storm."

Over the past several weeks, I've grown to respect Mr. Crosby's advice much more deeply.

As the work of recovery continues in the Gulf Coast area, let's remember that when disaster strikes on any scale - whether personal, local, national or global - helping hands are usually needed and appreciated much more than analytical, quizzical or critical words.

I found Mr. Crosby's tips via da po' blog.

The Alive in Truth website offers personal histories of people from areas affected by Hurricane Katrina.  Its mission is to "document individual lives, restore community bonds, and to uphold the voices, culture, rights, and history of New Orleanians."

The oral histories are fascinating, heartbreaking and uplifting all at once.

You should also read the site's tips for talking with trauma survivors.

as published in the Kenyon Review. Fertel wrote a compelling review of Spike Lee’s HBO documentary on Katrina, When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts and mentioned on this blog. He teaches at the New School for Social Research.

You will be hard-pressed to find a more personalized, thoughtful and insightful look at the embattled city of New Orleans post Katrina. Fertel’s piece doles out equal amounts of sensitivity and objectivity in examining New Orleans post Katrina on five levels:

• History
• Loss
• Food
• Race
• Animals

To summarize it would be unjust. I merely offer this small morsel from a delightful five-course meal.

Local journalists and newspapers have provided a great service to their local communities in this past year.  This was recognized recently by the Pulitzer organization with their selection for the Pulitzer prizes for 2006.

The Pulitzer for PUBLIC SERVICE goes to Times-Picayune, New Orleans

For its heroic, multi-faceted coverage of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, making exceptional use of the newspaper’s resources to serve an inundated city even after evacuation of the newspaper plant. (Selected by the Board from the Public Service category, where it was entered.)

The Pulitzer for PUBLIC SERVICE also goes to the Sun Herald, Biloxi-Gulfport, Miss.

 

For its valorous and comprehensive coverage of Hurricane Katrina, providing a lifeline for devastated readers, in print and online, during their time of greatest need.

 

 

The Pulitzer for BREAKING NEWS REPORTING goes to the Staff of Times-Picayune, New Orleans

For its courageous and aggressive coverage of Hurricane Katrina, overcoming desperate conditions facing the city and the newspaper.

We congratulate these institutions for their great work.

The Drive: Lakeview Trailer

The Drive is a driving tour through the most devastated neighborhoods in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. This is the trailer to The Drive: Lakeview. It provides a sample of what's included in the entire segment that's currently in post-production. The Lakeview neighborhood of New Orleans was not devastated by hurricane force winds so much as by the flooding caused by the breached 17th Avenue Canal and London Avenue Canal Levees.