resettle.org

Here's another group trying to help the victims of hurricane Katrina.

A realistic and holistic solution for the victims of hurricane Katrina

Our Mission: To mobilize every community of 10,000 people within 1000 miles of the gulf coast to provide for the temporary resettlement of up to 10 families.

I have been reading about the aftermath of hurricane Katrina today online. This article at the Ooze by Jim Henderson is a difficult one for me to process. Yes, I believe that institutional racism exists and keeps people down. Yes, it is possible that the federal government's slow response was in part due to racism in our nation. But I struggle with the desire to reduce this catastrophe to one cause, namely racism.

One of the TV news shows the other night discussed other very possible catastrophes. These catastrophes included an influenza pandemic, a dirty bomb being denoted in New York city, and an earthquake in San Francisco. The overwhelming reality for all of these potential crises is that we are not prepared. We are not the masters of our world that we like to think we are. And each of these crises are color blind.

If any one of these other catastrophes hit us (actually more like when, since all experts agree it is only a matter of time until the big one hits San Francisco), which will come with no warning like hurricane Katrina, we will be caught flat-footed, scratching our heads, wondering how this could happen to Americans. And many of our nations poorest, the elderly, and the sick will suffer the most.

Sadly so many didn't leave the gulf coast. Sadly, many couldn't leave the gulf coast. Sadly, local, state, and federal officials did not prepare for the worse case scenario. Sadly, local officials did not use 100's of buses that ended up under flood waters to evacuate the poor.

And sadly, we aren't prepared for the worse case scenario in San Francisco, New York, or any number of other cities either. Makes you want to live out in the sticks doesn't it!