The Effects of Poverty in a Disaster

Our country has always experienced its share of hardships and people at the poverty level. In fact, poverty is one of the concepts this great nation was built on. Individuals came in droves in search of a better life; many came with no more than the clothes on their backs. These courageous citizens built our nation and made it what it is today. Somewhere along the way, however, both public view and those facing poverty have changed. This was never more apparent than when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. When this massive hurricane hit it became immensely apparent that poverty was one of s the central causes of much of the turmoil, public reactions and the lack of response.
Thirty percent of the population of New Orleans lives in poverty. Tens of thousands had no transportation to leave when the evacuation order came. One of the key causes of the chaos after the hurricane was the attitude, itself, of a people use to turning to others for help. This is not typical of the American tradition in which many pioneers have suffered horrendous setbacks and accepted their situations with the courageous optimism that Americans carry in their genes. Our government has trained these poor people, to turn to them for help. The independence our country is known for was not seen in these citizens. Strong young men who should have been taking charge and organizing work groups for answers, were instead looting, raping, and causing substantial turmoil. The women, who should have used their powers and brains to work together and employ solutions, were yelling into television cameras for help. Yes, they were in trouble, yes, they were facing the greatest battle they had probably ever faced. But, in times of trouble, great minds usually prevail. In this case it didn’t happen.
The reactions of much of the American public should be taken to the Supreme Court. The media zoomed in on the violence with dramatic coverage destined to exploit the facts. If these victims had been middle or upper class citizens, the reactions would have been much different. A web site I recently visited showed two different newspaper pictures. One picture had a black man dressed in meager clothes carrying what seemed to be food out of a store. The caption read, “Looters run rampant.” The next picture showed a white women, dressed more professionally, carrying what seemed to be groceries out of a store. The caption on this picture read,” Citizens do what they can to survive.” This web site showed the difference in what the media wanted to show and how they changed things to show it the way they wanted it viewed. The public watched and judged the media’s coverage, and soon this was not the only talk, but discussion of blame as well. “Why didn’t they leave?” Many said. “Its their own fault.” A wise man once said, “When someone is drowning, you throw him a rope, you don’t criticize the way he is swimming.”
If for some strange reason, such as lack of highways or air travel, Donald Trump, Bill Gates, or one of the Walton children had been trapped in a similar situation, things would have been much different. They would have never had to endure the days and nights trapped in a city with no way out. Our government would have had helicopters, airplanes, and limousines in the vicinity immediately as red carpets were laid in the puddles so as not to ruin the shoes. This was far from the case in this situation. President Bush went to San Diego the day after the hurricane to meet with a group of businessmen. It took two days before the first report of supplies were delivered to the Superdome, where thousands of people were stranded. Five days passed before the National Guard arrived with transportation to evacuate the stranded, and it took thirteen days before Congressed passed a tax relief bill for the victims. The slowness of relief and rescue is mainly attributed to the poverty level of the victims and our government’s reaction to them
Differences in social classes have always been a part of life, not only in America but also throughout the world. But when economic status is one of the chief reasons for death and destruction, as in the case of Hurricane Katrina, something is terribly wrong. As we look back at these events and reactions, each individual needs to look inside him or herself and ask what went wrong and what changes need to be made so this disaster never repeats itself again