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The New Orleans Agenda appears here courtesy of Vincent Sylvain,
Publisher of
Policamp , Inc
APPLICATION FOR ABSENTEEISM VOTING
A 20-Point Plan To Destroy Black New Orleans
By Robert D. Bullard, Feb 01, 2006 San Francisco Bayview
As reconstruction and rebuilding move forward in New Orleans and the
Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama Gulf Coast region, it is clear
that the lethargic and inept emergency response after Hurricane
Katrina was a disaster that overshadowed the deadly storm itself.
Yet, there is a "second disaster" in the making - driven by racism,
classism, elitism, paternalism and old-fashioned greed.
The following "Twenty-Point Plan to Destroy Black New Orleans" is
based on trends and observations made over the past three months.
Hopefully, the good people of New Orleans, Louisiana, the Gulf Coast
and the United States will not allow this plan to go forward - and
instead adopt a principled plan and approach to rebuilding and
bringing back New Orleans that is respectful of all of its citizens.
1. Selectively hand out FEMA grants. The Federal Emergency
Management Agency is being consistent in the slow response in
getting aid to Katrina survivors. FEMA's grant assistance program
favors middle-income households. Make it difficult for low-income
and Black Katrina survivors to access government assistance. Direct
the bulk of the grant assistance to middle-income white storm
victims. The Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and several other
legal groups have sued FEMA over its response and handling of aid to
storm victims. FEMA has referred more than 2 million people, many of
them with low incomes, to the Small Business Administration to get
the loans.
2. Systematically deny the poor and Blacks SBA loans. Screen
out poor and deny Black households disaster loans. The New York
Times editorial summed up this problem: "The Poor Need Not Apply."
The Small Business Administration has processed only a third of the
276,000 home loan applications it has received. However, the SBA has
rejected 82 percent of the applications it received, a higher
percentage than in most previous disasters. Well-off neighborhoods
like Lakeview have received 47 percent of the loan approvals, while
poverty-stricken neighborhoods have gotten 7 percent. Middle-class
Black neighborhoods in the eastern part of the city have lower loan
rates.
3. Award insurance claims using the "wind or water" trap.
Because of the enormity of the damage in the wake of Katrina,
insurance companies will categorize a lot of legitimate wind claims
as flood- or water-related. The "wind or water" problem will hit
Black storm victims hardest because they are likely to have their
insurance with small companies - since the major firms "redlined"
many Black neighborhoods. Most rebuilding funds after disasters come
from private insurance - not the government.
4. Redline Black insurance policyholders. Numerous studies
show that African Americans are more likely than whites to receive
insufficient insurance settlement amounts. Insurance firms target
Black policyholders for low and inadequate insurance settlements
based on majority Black zip codes to subsidize fair settlements made
to white policyholders. If Black homeowners and business owners
expect to recover from Katrina, then they must receive full and just
insurance settlements. FEMA and the SBA cannot be counted on to
rebuild Black communities.
5. Use "green building" and flood-proofing codes to restrict
redevelopment. Requiring rebuilding plans to conform to "green
building" materials and new flood-proofing codes can price many low-
and moderate-income homeowners and small business owners out of the
market. This will hit Black homeowners and Black business owners
especially hard since they generally have lower incomes and lower
wealth.
6. Apply discriminatory environmental clean-up standards.
Failure to apply uniform clean-up standards can kill off Black
neighborhoods. Use of full-scale cleanup of white neighborhoods to
residential standards, while allowing no cleanup or partial cleanup
- industrial standards - of Black residential neighborhoods. Failure
to clean up Black residential areas can act as a disincentive for
redevelopment. It could also make people sick. Use the argument that
Black neighborhoods were already highly polluted with background
contamination, or "hot spots," exceeding EPA safe levels pre-Katrina
and thus need not be cleaned to more rigorous residential standards.
7. Sacrifice "low-lying" Black neighborhoods in the name of
saving the wetlands and environmental restoration. Allow Black
neighborhoods like the Lower Ninth Ward and New Orleans East to be
"yielded back to the swamp" while allowing similar low-lying white
areas to be rebuilt and redeveloped. This is a form of "ethnic
cleansing" that was not possible before Katrina. Instead of
emphasizing equitable rebuilding, uniform clean-up standards, equal
protection and environmental justice for African American
communities, public officials should send mixed signals for
rebuilding vulnerable "low-lying" Black neighborhoods.
8. Promote a smaller, more upscale and "whiter" New Orleans.
Concentrating on getting less-damaged neighborhoods up and running
could translate into a smaller, more upscale and whiter New Orleans
and a dramatically down-sized Black community. Clearly, shrinking
New Orleans neighborhoods disproportionately shrinks Black votes,
Black political power and Black wealth.
9. Revise land use and zoning ordinances to exclude. Katrina
can be used to change land use and zoning codes to "zone against"
undesirable land uses that were not politically possible before the
storm. Also, "expulsive" zoning can be used to push out certain land
uses and certain people.
10. Phased rebuilding and restoration scheme that concentrates on
the "high ground." New Orleans officials are being advised to
concentrate rebuilding on the areas that remained high and dry after
Katrina. These areas are disproportionately white and affluent. This
scenario builds on pre-existing inequities and "white privilege" and
ensures future inequities and "white privilege." By the time
rebuilding gets around to Black "low-lying" areas, there are not
likely to be any rebuilding funds left. This is the "oops, we are
out of funds" scenario.
11. Apply eminent domain as a Black land grab. Give Katrina
evacuees one year to return before the city is allowed to legally
"take" their property through eminent domain. Clearly, it will take
much longer than a year for most New Orleanians to return home. This
proposal could turn into a giant land grab of Black property and
loss of Black wealth they have invested in their homes and
businesses.
12. No financial assistance for evacuees to return. Thousands
of Katrina evacuees were shipped to more than three dozen states
with no provisions for return - equivalent to a "one-way" ticket.
Many Katrina evacuees are running short of funds. No money
translates into no return to their homes and neighborhoods. Promote
the "right to return" without committing adequate resources to
assist evacuees to return.
13. Keep evacuees away from New Orleans jobs. The nation's
unemployment rate was 5 percent in November 2005. The November 2005
jobless rate for Katrina returnees was 12.5 percent, while 27.8
percent of evacuees living elsewhere were unemployed. However, the
Black jobless rate was 47 percent in November compared with 13
percent for whites who have not gone back.
Katrina evacuees who have made it back to their home region have
much lower levels of joblessness. This is especially important for
African Americans whose joblessness rate fell over 30 percentage
points for returnees. The problem is that the vast majority of Black
Katrina evacuees have not returned to their home region. Only 21
percent of Black evacuees have returned compared with 48 percent of
whites.
14. Fail to enforce fair housing laws. Allow housing
discrimination against Blacks to run rampant. Katrina created a
housing shortage and opened a floodgate of discrimination against
Black homeowners and renters. In December 2005, the National Fair
Housing Alliance found high rates of housing discrimination against
African-Americans displaced by Hurricane Katrina. In 66 percent of
the tests conducted by the NFHA, 43 of 65 instances, whites were
favored over African Americans.
15. No commitment to rebuild and replace low- income public
housing. Shortly after Katrina struck, even the secretary of the
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development spoke of not
rebuilding all of the public housing lost during the storm. The HUD
secretary's statement is a powerful signal to New Orleans' poor that
public housing may not be around for them to return to.
16. Downplay the Black cultural heritage of New Orleans.
Promote rebuilding and the vision of a "new" New Orleans as if the
rich Black culture did not matter or act as if it can be replaced or
replicated in a "theme park" type redevelopment scenario. Developers
should capture and market the "Black essence" of New Orleans without
including Black people.
17. Treatment of mixed-income housing as superior to all-Black
neighborhoods. First, there is nothing inherently inferior about
an "all- Black" neighborhood - or an all-Black anything for that
matter. Black New Orleanians who chose to live in neighborhoods that
happened to be all-Black - whites have always had the right to move
in or move out of these neighborhoods - should not be forced to have
their neighborhoods rebuilt as "integrated" or "multicultural"
neighborhoods. Also, "mixed-income" housing, to many Blacks,
conjures up the idea of 10 percent of the fair market housing units
set aside for them. Many Blacks are battle-weary of competing for
that 10 percent. New Orleans was 68 percent Black before Katrina -
and most Black folks were comfortable with that.
18. Allow "oversight" (overseer) board to manage Katrina funds
that flow to New Orleans. Take away "home rule," since the
billions of Katrina redevelopment dollars that will flow to New
Orleans is too much money for a majority Black city council and a
Black mayor to oversee or manage. More important, the oversight
board will need to represent "big- money" interests - real estate,
developers, banking, insurance, hotels, law firms, tourist industry
etc. - well beyond the purview of a democratically elected city
government to ensure that the vision of the "new" New Orleans,
"smaller and more upscale," gets implemented.
19. Delay rebuilding and construction of New Orleans schools.
The longer the New Orleans schools stay closed, the longer the
families with children will stay away. Schools are a major predictor
of racial polarization. Before Katrina, over 125,000 New Orleans
children were attending schools in the city. Blacks made up 93
percent of New Orleans schools. Evacuated children are enrolled in
school districts from Arizona to Pennsylvania. Three months after
the storm, only one of the New Orleans' 116 schools was open.
20. Hold elections without appropriate Voting Rights Act
safeguards. Almost 300,000 registered voters left New Orleans
after Katrina. The powerful storm damaged or destroyed 300 of the
442 polling places. Holding city elections pose major challenges
regarding registration, absentee ballots, city workers, polling
places and identification for displaced New Orleanians.
Identification is required at the polls, and returning residents may
not have access to traditional identification papers - birth
certificates, drivers' licenses etc. - destroyed by the hurricane.
More than three months after Katrina struck, 80 percent of New
Orleans voters have not made their way back to the city, including
most African Americans, who comprised a two-thirds majority of the
population before the storm.
Most of the estimated 60,000 to 100,000 New Orleans residents who
have made it back are white and middle class, changing the racial
and political complexion of the city. Holding elections while the
vast majority of New Orleans voters are displaced outside of their
home district and even their home state is unprecedented in the
history of the United States, but it also raises racial justice and
human rights questions.
Robert D. Bullard is the director of the Environmental Justice
Resource Center at Clark Atlanta University.
America's 1st "free people of color" church to be closed; Treme',
New Orleans
 Historic
Treme parish to be abolished / The Louisiana Weekly, February 13,
2006
The archdiocese of New Orleans is abolishing one of the oldest and
historic parishes in the City, St. Augustine parish, in mid-March.
Archbishop Alfred Hughes made the announcement last Thursday. In
total, the archdiocese will close seven parishes in parts of New
Orleans, St. Bernard and Plaquemine parishes, while consolidating
many, as it struggles to keep afloat from the damages caused by
Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of the city from the breaches in
the levees. It is estimated that the archdiocese faces uninsured
losses of $84 million with nearly a third of the church's 1,200
buildings across the eight civil parishes having sustained damage.
According to Hughes, despite its historical significance, the
archdiocese can no longer afford to support St. Augustine parish.
The parish's weekly income was an average of $3,000 said Fr. Jerome
LeDoux, SVD, who has served as pastor of St. Augustine for the past
15 years. Reportedly the church sustained at least $400,000 in
rainwater damage.
In response to the decision by Hughes to close his parish, Fr.
LeDoux said, "I'm not in his corner, but I will not disobey him."
Located in the Treme neighborhood of New Orleans which abuts the
French Quarter, St. Augustine Parish was founded for free persons of
color and is the birthplace of the Sisters of the Holy Family, an
order of nuns founded by Henriette Delille.
While the church will remain open for weekly services, parishioners
of St. Augustine will become a part of the St. Peter Claver Parish,
which is pastured by Rev. Michael Jacques.
The history of St. Augustine Parish
The property on which St. Augustine stands was part of the
plantation estate that had been a tilery and brickyard headquarters
built in 1720 by the province of New Orleans' supervisor, the
Company of the Indies, as an economic stimulus for the province.
After the Company of the Indies left in 1731, the plantation was
sold to the Moreau family, eventually coming into the possession of
Julie Moreau, a manumitted slave, in 1775. Claude Treme, a
Frenchman, married Julie Moreau, thus taking title to the property.
Seeing a chance to make a profit, the husband and wife subdivided
the estate and sold off many lots on a first-come-first-served basis
to free people of color and others pouring in from the Old Quarter
jammed with Haitian immigrants fleeing the bloody 1791 revolution in
Haiti.
After selling 35 lots, Claude and Julie Treme left their plantation
home for a more peaceful life in 1810. In 1834, Jeanne Marie Aliquot
purchased the Treme's former home and property from the city of New
Orleans and brought in the United States' first Catholic elementary
school for free girls of color and a few slaves. This school had
been started in 1823 by Marthe Fortier, a onetime postulant of the
Hospital Nuns. Jeanne Marie Aliquot became a major catalyst in the
origins of St. Augustine Church.
Under economic duress from her social ventures, Jeanne Marie sold
the house to the Ursuline Sisters in 1836. They in turn sold the
property to the Carmelites in 1840, who then took over the little
school for colored girls and merged it with their school for white
girls. The Carmelite Sisters used the Treme home for their
motherhouse until 1926 when they moved out to Robert E. Lee
Boulevard in the West End section of New Orleans.
In the late 1830s, when free people of color got permission from
Bishop Antoine Blanc to build a church, the Ursulines donated the
corner property at Bayou Road (now Governor Nicholls St.) and St.
Claude which they had bought for $10,000, on the condition that the
church be named after their foundress, St. Angela Merici. However,
circumstances dictated that the church was named St. Augustine.
A few months before the October 9, 1842 dedication of St. Augustine
Church, the people of color began to purchase pews for their
families to sit. Upon hearing of this, white people in the area
started a campaign to buy more pews than the colored folks. Thus,
The War of the Pews began and was ultimately won by the free people
of color who bought three pews to every one purchased by the whites.
In an unprecedented social, political and religious move, the
colored members also bought all the pews of both side aisles. They
gave those pews to the slaves as their exclusive place of worship, a
first in the history of slavery in the United States.
This mix of the pews resulted in the most integrated congregation in
the entire country: one large row of free people of color, one large
row of whites with a smattering of ethnics, and two outer aisles of
slaves. Except for a brief six-month period when its sanctuary was
enlarged and blessed in time for Christmas 1925, St. Augustine
Church has been in continuous use as a place of worship until the
present time . . .
The culture of New Orleans Mardi Gras, complete with Indians, goes
to Atlanta
[pictured Big
Chief Ronnie "Buck" Baham. Photo by Kathy Dejoie]
(Atlanta, Georgia) - As New Orleans shifts into the first week of
Mardi Gras, many evacuees displaced to Atlanta due to Hurricane Katrina
can too. A New Orleans Mardi Gras style party will be presented at 11
p.m. each Wednesday at Club Frequency in Buckhead. “Wild Out
Wednesday”, is designed to bring the culture of the New Orleans
Mardi Gras experience that was birthed and continued until 2005 in the
historic Treme’ New Orleans, the nation’s oldest African-American
community.
Attendees of the events that begin Wednesday, February 15 and
culminate on Wednesday, February 22, 2006 will experience real Mardi
Gras Indians, the internationally renowned ReBirth and Lil Stooges Brass
Bands, DJ Captain Charles, The Lady Buck Jumpers Second Line Club and
girls who will throw beads from a balcony.
According to event organizers, the decision to host such a party
spawned from their protest against the 2006 Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
“We have never been against Mardi Gras, the event, our boycott was about
our leaders prioritizing tradition rather than its people, explains
ChiQuita Simms, organizer of the protest and the Mardi Gras in Atlanta
events. Mardi Gras 2006 simply should not be a “to-do” item for New
Orleans. Still today, there is no affordable and safe housing for half
of us to return to and the ones who are in hotels are being forced out
today whether or not they have secured more permanent housing. Many
parts of the city are still without electricity and working traffic
lights. When you drive through the ninth ward and along the breached
17th street levee, you won’t find any work being done. But when you
drive along St Charles you can see men hard at work erecting viewing
stands.”
To Simms, hosting Mardi Gras in the name of the economy is a false
impression that will cost New Orleans dearly now and later. “Tourists
have been spending money at Mardi Gras for 149 years and we are still
one of the poorest cities made evident by Hurricane Katrina, our schools
continue to fail our children and for generations, our streets are still
full of potholes, so I a not so sure why this year they want people to
believe that this one Mardi Gras will remedy and already bad state of
affairs. None of that money that is generated at Mardi Gras will reach
the people who really need it. And, not to mention, just weeks ago
President Bush has indicated that federal support to New Orleans is
coming to a halt. The decision to go on with Mardi Gras, and without the
needed sponsors and funding) is another clear indication that many will
be left out and behind for the second and third time. Going back home is
not even an option for many of us, continues Simms.”
New Orleans evacuees are displaced in more than 47 states across the
U.S. which has resulted in a demand for 504 themed events, music, food
and culture like never before. Events of this type are often therapeutic
as they can provide a temporary sense of normalcy and nostalgia. Here in
Atlanta, Club Frequency plays home to a weekly NOLA (New Orleans
Louisiana) night and the month of February has been dedicated to
recreating the ultimate Mardi Gras experience for not only evacuees but
Atlanta residents as well. “It is very exciting to see people reunite at
these events knowing that they had no other means of communicating
otherwise. It is also an honor to be able to employ, market and promote
our beloved musicians, their music and ultimately the city, says
ChiQuita Simms.”
Contact ChiQ Simms 404-816-6000
NOLA Mayoral Election Analysis—the Candidates
Louisiana Political Report
NOLA Mayoral Election Analysis—the Candidates: The upcoming mayoral
election in New Orleans is one of the most talked about races in the
country. But until the date is set in stone and rules are established
for out-of-state voters it will be hard to pin potential candidates
down.
For now it’s a game of “I’ve been asked to consider it” and “it’s too
early to think about politics.”
But regardless of the public posturing behind the scenes political
consultants, donors, lobbyists and elected officials are frantically
trying to figure out which candidates are preparing to run and which are
just posturing.
Following is a serious list of potential and probable candidates
actively exploring a mayoral run.
Oliver Thomas - A councilmember At-Large, Thomas is well liked
among both black and white voters and has been steady and accessible
throughout the crisis. But while running for mayor may appear
attractive, it would be a big risk politically because Thomas is a
shoo-in for re-election
Jackie Clarkson - As District C councilmember she has a strong
political base. Algiers is likely the largest block of voters remaining
intact in the city and the least affected by the storms. She had
previously declared to run for an At-Large council seat but is now
reconsidering her options.
Francis Heitmeier - State Sen. Francis Heitmeier shares
Clarkson’s geographical base ensuring that only one of them can run a
competitive campaign. If they both run they’ll simply cancel out each
others votes in the primary.
Eddie Sapir - Sapir’s At-Large council seat is term limited and
he was a rumored opponent even before Katrina.
Mitch Landrieu - The Lt. Gov. might just be the most talked about
potential candidate. He has strong ties to the seat as the son of former
mayor Moon Landrieu and even ran for it once already. He wouldn’t have
to give up his current seat to run and should he lose, it probably won’t
hurt his chances in 2007 should he try for a different promotion.
Dan Packer - As CEO and President of Entergy New Orleans he’s a
high profile businessman and community leader.
Ron Forman - As President and CEO of Audubon Nature Institute
he’s often credited with building the Audubon Institute from a mediocre
zoo to an internationally respected nature and tourism conglomerate.
Forman has been active in the community for decades and could be a
serious candidate.
Peggy Wilson - Donors in New Orleans tell us that Councilmember
Wilson has already begun organizing her campaign
Gary Solomon - As the owner of Crescent bank in New Orleans,
Solomon has been active in a cross section of civic responsibilities and
is being urged to run by local leaders.
Tom Watson, Leslie Jacobs, Dennis Bagneris, Bernard Charbonnet and
others may enter Mayor's Race . . .
By: Vincent Sylvain - NEWS FROM THE CAMP
Elected in 2002 with 85% white support and 40% black support, and $1
million in his campaign war- chest, Clarence Ray Nagin, mayor of New
Orleans was once believed to be unbeatable. However Nagin’s weakness was
exposed during Hurricane Katarina and he now appears venerable.
Many have questioned his leadership skills and the business community,
once his strongest supporters have begun to look for other options.
Nagin ran on a platform of running the city like a business, but his
administration has witness more turnover than a “five and dime” store.
The only original members of his cabinet are Technology Chief Greg
Meffert and Albert Pate. Pate, Nagin’s top housing executive has somehow
found the time to open her private restaurant “Alberta’s on Magazine”
during the crisis following the hurricane. Pate, faced with many
challenges in meeting building codes prior to the hurricane, was allowed
to open this past week.
Several other administration heads are rumored to be considering
submitting their resignations within the next few weeks. Not only is he
faced with the challenge of putting together a campaign staff, but he
has to retool his administration as well, a daunting task during both a
crisis and a campaign.
In addition to other names that have already emerged, others being
discussed in political circles are:
Denis Bagneris - A new prominent name to surface is Court of
Appeal Judge Dennis Bagneris, 57, the former president pro tem of the
state Senate. Several sources say that Bagneris has been approached by
people seeking a challenger to Nagin and that he has not yet turned them
down. If he decides to run, Bagneris would have to resign from the
appellate bench. But, were he to lose, his seven years judicial service
and 14 years in the state Senate would provide substantial retirement
benefits, and he could still associate with a big law firm. It is
believed that Bagneris could tap into resentment against the mayor in
the black community and also draw votes among whites, who form Nagin's
base. (John Maginnis)
Roland Belsome - Friends of 4th Circuit Court of Appeal Judge
Ronald Belsome is rumored to be trying to convince him to enter the
mayors’ race. Barred from participating in partisan elections while on
the beach, to even begin considering entertaining discussion Judge
Belsome would have to resign his seat. Another tough factor is whether
his friend Lt. Governor Mitch Landrieu enters the race. It is unlikely
that they would challenge each other.
Paul Bonin - Traffic Court Judge Paul Bonin is also said to be
considering a run for mayor. Bonin has proven in past elections that he
can get crossover votes, his entry could pose a problem for candidates
on both ends of the political and racial spectrum. Like Judge Belsome,
he likewise would have to resign his post in order to make the race.
Virginia Boulet - Attorney Virginia Boulet is said to be
seriously considering a run at Mayor Ray Nagin, and has been in multiple
discussions with political strategists and consultants for the last
several days. Boulet, a Democrat, is a partner at one of the largest law
firms in the state - Adams and Reese. She graduated from Yale University
and received her Juris Doctorate, cum laude, in 1983 from Tulane. While
in law school Ms. Boulet was elected to the Order of the Coif and served
on the board of editors for The Maritime Lawyer. She is also a director
of CenturyTel, a communications/ISP service. (Louisiana Political
Report)
Bernard L. Charbonnet Jr. - Bernard Charbonnet has served as the
Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans.
Charbonnet, leader of strong 7th-ward base COUP political organization
is an attorney with an extensive experience in the area of personal
litigation, civil litigation, construction and aviation matters.
Charbonnet’s expertise in construction law may serve appealing to voters
looking for a leader to help them recover from the devastation of
Hurricane Katrina. Well liked in most circles, Charbonnet could likely
put together a broad base of business, political, and cultural sensitive
coalitions. His entry would pose a challenge to everyone with the
possible exception on Lt. Governor Landrieu.
Leslie Jacobs has been involved in K-12 education reform for the
past 20 years. Since 1996, she has served as a gubernatorial appointee
to Louisiana's Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. Jacobs has
been one of the leaders in designing and implementing Louisiana's
accountability and teacher quality reform efforts. She also is the
former owner and president of Louisiana's then largest insurance
brokerage firm, and has received numerous honors, including the National
Governors Association Award for Distinguished Service to State
Government and the selection as one of "Twenty People Who Influenced
Louisiana 1981-2001" by Louisiana Life magazine. Jacobs would be able to
finance her own campaign.
Senator Edwin Murray - Murray serves State Senate District 4
which take up parts of Gentilly, Lakeview, Treme and the 7th Ward, thus
has proved that he could get elected in a broad-based community. He was
first elected to the State House of Representative in 1991. Known as a
dedicated hard worker, Murray serves as chairman of the powerful
Legislative Audit Advisory Council. He is also appointed to the Joint
Legislative Committee on the Budge, Revenue & Fiscal Affairs and
Vice-chair of Disaster Planning, Crisis Management, Recovery and
Long-Term Revitalization. Murray should be able to quickly raise the
funds required for a short race.
Pastor Tom Watson - Pastor Watson is the founder of Watson
Memorial Teaching Ministries. He also serves as President of the Greater
New Orleans Coalition of Ministers, a group of 180 plus ministers
representing more than 40,000 members with a stated mission to impact
and improve the spiritual, social, educational, economical, and
political disparities in our Greater New Orleans Community. Watson most
recently took on several public official following the death of Levon
Jones at Razzoo's Bar on Bourbon and an incident in Jefferson Parish
where deputies fired more than 100 shots to kill a 16-year-old black
man. He has also lead the fight in challenging Mayor Nagin on issues
such as the battle to maintain 'a residency requirement' for New Orleans
Police Officers, participation of minority in city contract awards, and
race related issues. A mastered degree social worker by profession,
Watson could have the built-in network to ignite minority voters.
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4 MONTHS TO DECIDE; hardest hit areas must prove viability
 Nagin
panel says hardest hit areas must prove viability city's footprint may
shrink; full buyouts proposed for those forced to move. New housing to
be developed in vast swaths of New Orleans' higher ground
Wednesday, January 11, 2006, By Frank Donze and Gordon Russell,
Times-Picayune Staff writers
Residents of New Orleans areas hardest-hit by Hurricane Katrina's
floodwaters would have four months to prove they can bring their
neighborhoods back to life or face the prospect of having to sell out to
a new and powerful redevelopment authority under a plan to be released
today by a key panel of Mayor Ray Nagin's rebuilding commission.
In perhaps its boldest recommendation, the panel says Nagin should
impose a moratorium on building permits in shattered areas covering most
of the city, while residents there meet to craft plans to revive their
neighborhoods. The proposals are spelled out in the final report of the
land-use committee of Nagin's Bring New Orleans Back commission, which
was obtained by The Times-Picayune.
Addressing the debate about whether planners and politicians should
declare areas off limits or allow market forces to determine the city's
future, Nagin's panel clearly sought a compromise by instead proposing a
process to gauge residents' intentions to return to their neighborhoods.
But ultimately, commissioners say, not every neighborhood will be
sustainable and there will be a need to use eminent domain to seize some
property. The panel proposes the creation of a new public agency,
tentatively called the Crescent City Redevelopment Corp., to use that
power, but only as a "last resort."
While debate has focused heavily on the hot-button footprint issue, the
report also proposes a number of lofty ideas that could change the
cityscape, including a light-rail system, large mixed-income
neighborhoods and new parks that double as additional flood protection.
The panel's recommendations -- along with those of six other
subcommittees advising the mayor on various subjects ranging from
education to culture to infrastructure -- are not binding; it will be up
to Nagin to endorse them, modify them or ignore them. Nagin has been
receiving regular briefings from the group and commissioners say he is
on board with most of the major concepts in its report.
Ultimately, the rebuild blueprint, the product of three months of work
by hundreds of participants, also must pass muster with the White House
and the Louisiana Recovery Authority, the state agency empowered with
disbursing billions of dollars in federal aid.
Practically since the day the storm passed through New Orleans, the
question of whether all of the city's neighborhoods can or should be
resettled has been the most contentious issue in play. The idea of
"shrinking the footprint" has been particularly unpopular among
African-American leaders and residents, who made up nearly 70 percent of
the city's pre-Katrina population and who were much more likely than
white residents to live in areas devastated by flooding.
Commissioners on Nagin's panel expect that the mere mention of
expropriating the homes of people who want to rebuild will ignite a
firestorm of protest. In hopes of lowering the temperature of the
debate, their report calls for a much more generous buyout option than
the most visible program to gain traction thus far, the bill proposed by
U.S. Rep. Richard Baker, R-Baton Rouge. The Baker bill, which stalled in
Congress' last session but is expected to be heard again in the upcoming
weeks, would pay homeowners no less than 60 percent of the equity they
have in their homes, while the banks holding those mortgages also would
settle for no more than 60 percent of the balance.
The Nagin panel, acting on the assumption that something akin to the
Baker legislation will pass, is proposing to make homeowners in buyout
areas whole by tapping federal Community Development Block Grants to
cover the remaining 40 percent, so that those forced to sell would wind
up getting all of their equity back. Buyout prices should be figured on
a home's pre-Katrina market value, minus insurance settlements, the
report says.
Homeowners in areas that are not slated for buyouts would have the
option of voluntarily selling to the newly chartered redevelopment
authority. However, they would receive 100 percent of their equity only
if they purchased another home in the city, according to a commission
member familiar with the plan. Otherwise, they would receive only the 60
percent provided in the Baker plan.
The report estimates the rebuilding effort will cost more than $17
billion, with the largest portion -- $12 billion -- devoted to buyouts.
The second most expensive line item is for new light-rail lines that
would crisscross the city, at a cost of $3.3 billion.
While the price tag is certainly eye-popping, members of the commission
don't believe their wish list is unrealistic. They have been in constant
contact with Donald Powell, the federal czar named by President Bush to
oversee Gulf Coast rebuilding efforts. Moreover, Joe Canizaro, the
banker and developer who chairs the land-use panel, is a leading Bush
fund-raiser with enviable access to the White House.
Bush is scheduled to visit New Orleans on Thursday, where he is expected
to meet privately with Nagin and Mel Lagarde, the health care executive
who co- chairs the commission.
Morial rejects idea of a New Orleans reduced in size
Sunday, January 08, 2006. By Gwen Filosa, Times-Picayune Staff
writer,
 Depicting
a Utopian vision of complete recovery and restoration of the Gulf Coast,
without a single person left behind, former Mayor Marc Morial delivered
a policy speech in New Orleans on Saturday calling for a return of
residents to the region battered by Hurricane Katrina.
"Every citizen has the right to return," said Morial, in his first solo
formal address in New Orleans since the hurricane struck Aug. 29.
"It does not do this region or country any good for anyone to suggest
that we don't want this one or that one back. I don't care whether they
live in Violet or Empire, on Lizardi or in Eastover, in Boscoville or in
Lakeview," Morial said. "Each and every one should have the opportunity
to return and reclaim their property."
Morial, 48, left New Orleans in 2003 for New York City to serve as
president and chief executive of the National Urban League. His
departure came after an unsuccessful bid to change the city's charter in
order to seek a third consecutive term as mayor.
The former mayor said his job now is to influence policy, not to back
any political candidates in upcoming elections or stir dissent among the
city's elected officials.
Morial has visited the region since the flood waters tore through
collapsed levees, but Saturday marked his first spotlight encounter with
the public.
Morial has visited the region since the flood waters tore through
collapsed levees, but Saturday marked his first spotlight encounter with
the public.
"What was painfully obvious is that all the people in this region have
found themselves in the same boat," Morial said. "Are all these people
going to be on Noah's Ark or on the deck of the Titanic?"
Morial spent an hour detailing his vision for rebuilding New Orleans and
neighboring areas. From Pontchartrain Park to Pascagoula, Miss., he
said, he envisions a future of restoration.
While Morial didn't directly criticize utility or elected officials, he
noted that the Catholic Church where the crowd of 400 ( there were
actually 753 visitors who signed the book) gathered Saturday was drawing
its power from generators and not electric lines.
"Turn on the lights in New Orleans east and the 9th Ward," Morial said,
drawing cheers. "Pick up the garbage. If you do that, stores will open,
the businesses will open. There will be a place for teachers to live,
for workers. Turn on the lights in Pontchartrain Park. Turn on the
lights in St. Bernard Parish. Turn on the lights and give people the
opportunity to return to New Orleans. The nation is watching."
Morial called for:
- A regional flood control system built to withstand a Category 5
storm, and paid for using billions of dollars each year the federal
government gets from Louisiana's oil and gas leases.
- The closing of the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet.
- Ensuring all displaced voters can cast ballots in the upcoming
elections, regardless of where they live.
- Creating a victims' compensation fund, similar to one set up
after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
- Building a memorial for those killed during the storm.
- Supporting a plan proposed in Congress by Rep. Richard Baker,
R-Baton Rouge, to set up a corporation that would buy out destroyed
homes at no less than 60 percent of the homes' equity before
Katrina. But Morial said owners should be provided more than the
equity of their home if they agree to rebuild in the region.
Morial was in friendly surroundings Saturday at St. Maria Goretti
Catholic Church, surrounded by supporters welcoming him home. Many in
the audience shouted out in agreement during his speech.
City Councilwoman Cynthia Willard-Lewis praised him for maintaining a
"Christ-like spirit" during the crisis, while state Sen. Ann Duplessis,
D-New Orleans, said, "He will always be our mayor . . ."
"I had to go down to Lower 9," he (Morial) said. "I wanted to touch the
levee. I wanted to see the houses and the neighborhood. I didn't want to
rely on what someone told me . . ."
A Citizens' Bill of Rights in Rebuilding New Orleans
The Right to Return
- All displaced persons should maintain the “Right of Return” to
New Orleans as an International “Human Right.” A persons’
socioeconomic status, class, employment, occupation, educational
level, neighborhood residence, or how they were evacuated should
have no bearing on this fundamental right. This right shall include
the provision of adequate transportation to return to the city by
the similar means that a person was dispersed. THE CITY SHOULD NOT
BE DEPOPULATED OF ITS MAJORITY AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND LOWER INCOME
CITIZENS, and must be rebuilt to economically include all those who
were displaced.
- All displaced persons must retain their right of citizenship in
the city, especially including the right to vote in the next
municipal elections. Citizen rights to the franchise must be
protected and widely explained to all dispersed persons. The
provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1965 should be examined and
enforced in this regard.
- All displaced persons should have the right to shape and
envision the future of the city. Shaping the future should not be
left to elected officials, appointed commissions, developers and/or
business interests alone. We the citizens are the primary
stakeholders of a re-imagined New Orleans. Thus, we MUST be directly
involved in imagining the future. Provisions must be included to
insure this right.
- All displaced persons should have the right to participate in
the rebuilding of the city as owners, producers, providers,
planners, developers, workers, and direct beneficiaries.
Participation must especially include African-Americans and the
poor, and those previously excluded from the development process.
- In rebuilding the city, all displaced persons should have the
right to quality goods and services based on equity and equality.
Disparities and inequality must be eliminated in all aspects of
social, economic and political life. It should be illegal to
discriminate against an individual due to their income, occupation
or educational status, in addition to the traditional categories of
race, gender, religion, language, disability, culture or other
social status.
- In rebuilding the city, all displaced persons should have the
right to affordable neighborhoods, quality affordable housing,
adequate health care, good schools, repaired infrastructures, a
livable environment and improved transportation and hurricane
safety.
- In rebuilding the city, workers, especially hospitality workers
should have the right to be paid a livable wage with good benefits.
- In rebuilding the city, African-American should have the right
to increased economic benefits and ownership. The percentage of
Black owned enterprises MUST dramatically increase from the present
14%, and the access to wealth and ownership must also be
dramatically improved.
- In rebuilding the city, African-Americans and any displaced low
income populations should have the right to preferential treatment
in cleanup jobs, construction and operational work associated with
rebuilding the city.
- In rebuilding the city, the right to contracting preference
should also be given to Community Development collaboratives,
community and faith-based corporations/organizations, and New
Orleans businesses that partner with nonprofit service providers and
people of color. No contracts should be let to companies that
disregard Davis- Bacon, Affirmative action and local participation.
Proposed legislation to create a “recovery opportunity zone” should
specifically include Community Development organizations and
minority firms as alternatives to the no bid multi-national
companies. Over the last 30 years, such firms have demonstrated
their capacity to successfully build hundreds of thousands of
quality affordable housing, and neighborhood commercials and
businesses and service enterprises.
- In rebuilding the city, priority must be given to the right to
an environmentally clean and hurricane safe city, rather than the
destruction of Black neighborhoods or communities such as the lower
9th ward. Priority must also be given to environmental justice,
disaster planning and evacuation plans that work for the most
transit dependent populations and the most vulnerable residents of
the city.
- In rebuilding the city, priority must be given to the right to
preserve and continue the rich and diverse cultural traditions of
the city, and the social experiences of Black people that produced
the culture. The second line, Mardi Gras Indians, brass bands,
creative music, dance foods, language and other expressions are the
“soul of the city.” The rebuilding process must preserve these
traditions. THE CITY MUST NOT , BE CULTURALLY, ECONOMICALLY OR
SOCIALLY GENTRIFIED. INTO A “SOULLESS” COLLECTION OF CONDOS AND
tract home NEIGHBORHOODS FOR THE RICH. We also respectfully request
that the CBC initiate its own Commission to thoroughly investigate
all aspects of the physical and human dimensions of the Katrina
disaster.
AALP / NOLOC
The AALP is a 3-year-old network of about 50 New Orleans
African-American community, business and religious leaders and
representatives that focus on Agenda building, policy analysis,
strategic dialogue and consensus building. Prior to the Katrina
disaster, we had developed an Agenda of common interests to potentially
guide future policy choices and community actions.
The NOLOC is the local branch of the Millions More Movement (MMM) that
is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Million Man March this Oct
14-16 in Washington, DC. The MMM is dedicated to building a mass
movement to foster justice, self determination and liberation for Black
and poor people worldwide.
Since Katrina, we have all been scattered to many locations, but
through phone discussions and e-mails, the broad outline of our response
to the disaster is emerging. We wish to convey our initial position to
the MMM and the CBC as a part of the national debate on the Katrina
disaster, and in preparation for any proposed legislation. We also wish
to discuss our views with the City Council and the Louisiana Legislative
Black Caucus at the earliest opportunity.
We are available for further discussion of the points in this
document with the Council, the Caucus, the CBC and the MMM, and to offer
testimony to any policy forum or Committee hearings that may ensue. We
believe that the AALP, NOLOC and numerous other groups are articulating
the same position: Rebuild a New Orleans that is more just and equitable
for the citizens who were displaced, and eliminate racial and class
inequities.
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