Social effects of Hurricane Katrina
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The Social effects of Hurricane Katrina are complex and yet to be fully determined. Initially, some lives were lost, while many more were disrupted. The event has left hundreds of thousands without access to their homes or jobs, has separated people from their loved ones, and has inflicted both physical and mental distress on those who suffered through the storm and its aftermath. Unlike economic damage, human suffering is extremely difficult to quantify, but it is clear that Hurricane Katrina has caused more immediate anguish than any other natural disaster to ever hit America. However, in the longer term, the effect will likely be an end to some of the most impoverished neighborhoods in the United States, and end to a large degree the cycle of self-perpetuating poverty contained therein.
Many victims have expressed dissatisfaction with the speed and quality of the government's response to the tragedy. This, in addition to the disasterous event itself, have left many victims with a sense of isolation. However, this is contrasted by the generosity of outside communities welcoming the tired, the poor, huddled masses yearning to breathe free into their communities, and volunteering to help them find employment. The frequent media descriptions of New Orleans as a "war-zone" amid the prevalence of death and destruction of property suggest an atmosphere of the type with which lasting psychological trauma is usually associated, but it is too soon to know what the long-term psychological effects will be. In addition, the media has been saturated with apocalyptic-type messages in reference to the hurricane which, in itself, can contribute to the victim's sense of trauma, isolation, and abandonment. One sensitive issue concerned the term for the displaced, refugees, which appears five times more frequently in the global media than the more neutral ‘evacuees’.[1] The somewhat hyperbolic representations of the devastation have served to increase the level of attention and support provided for the victims of this disaster. When compared to the massive and instantaneous loss of life incurred contemporaneously by a tidalwave in Thailand, the relatively slow incursion of the flood waters, and the much larger survival window gave many thousands an opportunity to escape with their lives and families.
Evacuated citizens are spread over many states and cities. Due to this, many people were separated from their family members, including young children separated from their parents and pets, however a coordinated effort combining many diverse databases has been effective in reconnected children with their parents. Furthermore, an effort to catalog, identify, or even to collect remains of the dead has barely begun, leaving those who do not know the whereabouts of loved ones to suffer uncertainty and anxiety. Over time both the reconnection and recovery operations have improved, but it will be much time before the majority of bodies are retrieved and people reunited.
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Bankruptcies
Although the devastation inflicted by Hurricane Katrina and the inadequate government response to the disaster is expected to cause further economic misery for the poor residents of New Orleans and other affected areas, Jim Sensenbrenner, Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, has refused to allow victims of the hurricane to enjoy any exception to the recent Bankruptcy Reform, a recent bill passed with widespread support of the banking industry that aims to make it more difficult for consumers to declare bankruptcy. "If someone in Katrina is down and out, and has no possibility of being able to repay 40 percent or more of their debts, then the new bankruptcy law doesn't apply," Sensenbrenner said [2].
Longer term impact
Many evacuees from New Orleans, facing months without income, severely damaged or destroyed homes, and little in the way of recoverable possessions have begun expressing desires to permanently resettle elsewhere. Possible locations include the areas to which they were evacuated, or with friends or family in other states. This would lead to potentially large demographic effects not only on New Orleans but on the entire country, rivaled only by the Great Migration of African Americans in the first half of the 20th century, and the mass migration of the 1930s as a result of the Dust Bowl.
Studies have shown that concentration of poverty are self-perpetuating, thus some postulate that the Hurricane may have a small positive impact on future poverty levels.
The Diaspora
While many existing organizations have worked to help those displaced, and some new groups and special efforts have been initiated, the survivors of Hurricane Katrina are still largely unorganized. Survivors have only recently begun to form associations for their own interests in the recovery effort. The largest of these associations is the ACORN Katrina Survivors Association, led by members of New Orleans ACORN. The group has protested FEMA policies in both Houston and Baton Rouge, and claims over 2,000 members.
The diaspora of displaced survivors is likely to endure for decades as former citizens of New Orleans resettle in other areas yet retain strong cultural ties.
See also
- Hurricane Katrina
- Economic effects of Hurricane Katrina
- Political effects of Hurricane Katrina
- Criticism of government response to Hurricane Katrina
External links
- Forgotten town suffers, too small to be noticed
- No Bankruptcy Relief for Katrina Victims
- Disconnected families coping with fear, stress
- The Katrina List database, for tracking or searching for refugees.
- ACORN Katrina Survivors Association
