Letter from a New Orleans evacuee

Here’s a belated posting of an e-mail I received September 16 from VFR regular Paul Henry (aka Paul Murgos), who lives in New Orleans. I had written to him shortly after the storm hit asking about how things were going and this was the first I heard back from him.

Dear Lawrence,

My family and I are OK. This is the first day I have access to e-mail since the Friday before Katrina. I have been temporarily relocated to Houston since yesterday. The estimate is anywhere from a few weeks to a year before I can return because our office is in a building that is being evaluated for extensive flood damage in the basement.

My condo building suffered no damage. My parents’ home had a tree on it and required extensive debris removal, but their damage was relatively light and I was able to get the major problems sorted out before I left on Tuesday.

Why is it stupid to think the post-Katrina assistance efforts were racist?

Just the major reasons for now: The adjoining parishes are 75-90% white, and they got flooded and received aid no sooner than Orleans Parish. Recall my white parish president crying on national television because we whites were receiving no aid? I live only four blocks from the infamous 17th Street Canal, which separates Orleans from Jefferson Parish. Across the street from me is an area that has perhaps the most expensive real estate in the state, and it got flooded two days after the storm as the flood waters made their way around.

All the Best,
Paul

Posted by Lawrence Auster at September 22, 2005 10:30 PM | Send