It's Their Own Fault, or Is It?

The situation in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina continues to shock and disturb me. Is it really any surprise that in circumstances where people are driven to their limits, without food, clean water, shelter, or any plans for the immediate future, that chaos would break out? Think about it, sitting in front of your computers. How you would react if suddenly you were uprooted and had no idea how to fulfill your most basic necessities. In New Orleans, it's not just a matter of finding a faucet to get some water and carrying a pack of trail mix. And this has been going on for days. I'm not excusing the chaos and violence in New Orleans, but I also am not surprised at it.

Now, Michael Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, has the gall to suggest, in the midst of ongoing recovery and evacuation efforts, that those stranded in New Orleans are responsible for their own fates. A classic case of blaming the victim for his or her own situation so as to not admit one's own culpability in creating the crisis. Brown argues that residents of New Orleans should have heeded warnings in light of a mandatory evacuation order (I may have misspoke in my earlier post about the evacuation not being mandatory, regardless however, the authorities failed to render assistance to those who couldn't evacuate because they lacked the means to do so). Brown states, "I don't make judgments about why people chose not to leave but, you know, there was a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans." Yes, Mr. Brown, we do know. We also know very well why those still in New Orleans didn't get out. And yes, Mr. Brown, you are in fact making a judgment. Brown has also stated that, "Things are going relatively well." Relative to what? Perhaps what he means is that the burning, drowning, and dying of New Orleans is going "relatively well."

Is Brown making an excuse for the utter failure of the federal government to react swiftly and decisively? It offends me that some in positions of authority can so easily disregard poor minority folks who are so "unlike" those who have the power to do something. Let me state that I am well aware of the complex and complicated nature of managing an effective response to the situation throughout the Gulf region.

President Bush has stated that the results of the effort to address the crisis are "not acceptable." Well, Mr. Bush, as the leader of the free world, as you're so often referred to, how about some leadership? We need something more than a couple of Tom Cruise Top Gun fly-bys. Oh, and thank you for cutting your month-long holiday short by two days. I'm sure the working poor of New Orleans who couldn't afford to evacuate and likely rarely get a vacation appreciate it. Perhaps they're enjoying the time off from their jobs they're getting now, but I doubt it.