New Orleans: One Year Later

In a week when much of the nation's attention once again turns toward New Orleans and the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina, a few gems caught our eye.

In the new edition of Time, there's a short but poignant editorial on the media, race and Katrina. In a nutshell: Journalists did not fail at their jobs because they did not report that blacks were disproportionately affected, "but in how too many people were making the surface observation that there were lots of blacks affected without spending the time parsing the facts that would make it meaningful or informative.” The infamous "blacks 'loot' versus whites 'find'" photo comparison was among several examples cited.

Life in gay New Orleans continues, albeit at a slower pace. As the city prepares to celebrate its first post-Katrina Southern Decadence, there's been considerable reporting that heavily gay neighborhoods such the French Quarter, Bywater and Uptown were spared much damage. But that's misleading. "Middle class neighborhoods like Lakeview, where many gays and lesbians owned houses and built communities still sit in ruins a year after the storm." writes John Caldwell in the upcoming Advocate, surveying many gays and lesbians who were displaced by Katrina. "That loss of community is mourned by even those who have returned to areas where there was little storm damage."

Critically-acclaimed novelist Clarence Nero—a New Orleans native whose newest story, Three Sides to Every Story, just hit the shelves—offers a chilling glimpse at a once vibrant neighborhood in an essay at KeithBoykin.com: "I drove through the Ninth Ward the other day and I swear it looked like a damn atomic bomb exploded. Why is it taking so long for the government to clean-up? You still have houses dismantled and cars piled up on top of one another."

The Press, Race and Katrina (Time)

Gulf Coast Marks a Year Since Katrina (NYT)

Has Gay New Orleans Recovered? (The Advocate)

One Year Later (Keith Boykin)

Comments

[Alan T]

Thanks so much for the Katrina updates. You have remained on top of it. Didn't you say your family was from Mississippi?

[.rod.]

I want to send you guys of New Orleans a thought from France. I wish you well and hope for a good new start in this beautiful Louisiana.