By New Orleans-based Activists
We, the undersigned, represent a wide range of grassroots New Orleans organizers, activists, artists, educators, media makers, health care providers and other community members concerned about the fate of our city. This letter is directed to all those around the world concerned about the fate of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, but is especially intended for US-based nonprofit organizations, foundations, and other institutions with resources and finances that have been, or could be, directed towards the Gulf Coast.
In the days after the storm, there were many promises of support made to the people of New Orleans. Promises from not only the federal government, but also an array of nongovernmental organizations, such as progressive and liberal foundations and nonprofits. Small and large organizations have done fundraising on our behalf, promising to deliver resources and support to the people of New Orleans.
Many organizations and individuals have supported New Orleans-led efforts with time, resources, and advocacy on our behalf, and for this we are very grateful. These organizations followed through on their promises and offered support in a way that was respectful, responsible, and timely.
However, we are writing this letter to tell you that, aside from these very important exceptions, the support we need has not arrived, or has been seriously limited, or has been based upon conditions that become an enormous burden for us.
While we remain in crisis, understaffed, underfunded and in many cases in desperate need of help, we have seen promises go unfulfilled. From the perspective of the poorest and least powerful, it appears that the work of national allies on our behalf has either not happened or if it has happened it has been a failure.
In the days after August 29, 2005 the world watched as our city was devastated. This destruction was not caused by Hurricane Katrina, but by failures of local, state and national government, and institutional structures of racism and corruption. The disaster highlighted already-existing problems such as neglect, privatization and deindustrialization.
As New Orleanians, we have seen tragedy first hand. We have lost friends and family and seen our community devastated. More than 15 months later, we have seen few improvements. Our education, health care and criminal justice systems remain in crisis, and more than 60% of the former population of our city remains displaced. Among those that remain, depression and other mental health issues have skyrocketed.
While many nationwide speak of "Katrina Fatigue," we are still living the disaster. We remain committed to our homes and communities. And we still need support.
In 15 months we have hosted visits by countless representatives from an encyclopedic list of prominent organizations and foundations. We have given hundreds of tours of affected areas, and we have assisted in the writing of scores of reports and assessments. We have participated in or assisted in organizing panels and workshops and conferences. We have supplied housing and food and hospitality to hundreds of supporters promising to return with funding and resources, to donate staff and equipment and more. It seems hundreds of millions of dollars have been raised in our name, often using our words, or our stories.
However, just as the government's promises of assistance, such as the "Road Home" program, remain largely out of reach of most New Orleanians, we have also seen very little money and support from liberal and progressive sources.
Instead of prioritizing efforts led by people who are from the communities most affected, we have seen millions of dollars that was advertised as dedicated towards Gulf Coast residents either remain unspent, or shuttled to well-placed outsiders with at best a cursory knowledge of the realities faced by people here. Instead of reflecting local needs and priorities, many projects funded reflect outside perception of what our priorities should be. We have seen attempts to dictate to us what we should do, instead of a real desire to listen and struggle together. We have heard offers of strategic advice, but there have been very few resources offered to help us carry it out.
We are at an historic moment. The disaster on the Gulf Coast, and especially in New Orleans, has highlighted issues of national and international relevance. Questions of race, class, gender, education, health care, food access, policing, housing, privatization, mental health and much more are on vivid display.
The South has been traditionally underfunded and often exploited by institutions, including corporations, the labor movement, foundations, and the federal government. We have faced the legacy of centuries of institutional racism and oppression, with little outside support. And yet, against massive odds, grassroots movements in the South have organized and struggled and won historic, inspiring victories with international relevance.
In New Orleans, against incredible odds, despite personal loss and family tragedies, people are fighting for the future of the city they love. Many are working with little to no funding or support, and have achieved remarkable success.
We are writing this open letter to you to tell you that it's not too late. The struggle is still ongoing. Evacuees are organizing in trailer parks, health care providers are opening clinics, former public housing residents are fighting to keep their homes from being demolished, artists and media makers are documenting the struggle, educators and lawyers are joining with high school students to fight for better schools.
We ask you, as concerned friends and allies nationwide, as funders and organizations, to look critically at your practices. Has your organization raised money on New Orleans' behalf? Did that money go towards New Orleans-based projects, initiated and directed by those most affected? Have you paid New Orleans organizations that have acted as consultants? Have you listened directly to the needs of those in the Gulf and been responsive to them? Have you adjusted your practices and strategies to the organizing realities on the ground?
We ask you to seize this opportunity, and join and support the grassroots movements. If the people of New Orleans can succeed against incredible odds to save their city and their community, it is a victory for oppressed people everywhere. If the people of New Orleans lose, it is a loss for movements everywhere. Struggling together, we can win together.
Signed,
Cherice Harrison-Nelson
Director and Curator, Mardi Gras Indian Hall of Fame, New Orleans
Royce Osborn
writer/producer, New Orleans
Greta Gladney
4th generation Lower 9th Ward resident, New Orleans
Corlita Mahr, New Orleans
Judy Watts
President/CEO, Agenda for Children, New Orleans
Robert “Kool Black” Horton
Critical Resistance, New Orleans
Jennifer Turner
Community Book Center, New Orleans
Mayaba Liebenthal
INCITE Women of Color Against Violence, Critical Resistance, New Orleans
Norris Henderson
Co-Director Safe Streets - Strong Communities, New Orleans
Ursula Price
Outreach and Investigation Coordinator, Safe Streets - Strong Communities, New Orleans
Evelyn Lynn
Managing Director, Safe Streets - Strong Communities, New Orleans
Althea Francois, New Orleans
Malcolm Suber
People’s Hurricane Relief Fund, New Orleans
Saket Soni
New Orleans Worker’s Justice Project, New Orleans
Nick Slie, I-10
Witness Project, Co-Artistic Director Mondo Bizarro, New Orleans
Catherine Jones
Medical student, Tulane University, Organizer and co-founder, Latino Health Outreach Project, New Orleans
Jennifer Whitney
coordinator, Latino Health Outreach Project
S. Mandisa Moore
INCITE! New Orleans and the Women’s Health and Justice Initiative, New Orleans
Aesha Rasheed
Project Manager, New Orleans Network, New Orleans
Jordan Flaherty
Left Turn Magazine, New Orleans
Dix deLaneuville
Educator, New Orleans
Courtney Egan
Filmmaker, New Orleans
Rebecca Snedeker
Filmmaker, New Orleans
Catherine A. Galpin, RN
FACES and Children's Hospital, New Orleans
Hamilton Simons-Jones, New Orleans
Al Alcazar
Educator, New Orleans
Grace Bauer
Families and Friends of Louisiana 's Incarcerated Children
Erin Bell, New Orleans resident
Xochitl Bervera
Families and Friends of Louisiana 's Incarcerated Children
Mario E. Carbajal
New Orleans resident living in Houston
Bess Carrick
Producer/Director, New Orleans
John Clark
Professor of Philosophy (Loyola University)
Brandon Darby
Director of Relief Operations Common Ground Relief
Diana Dunn
The People's Institut, European Dissent, New Orleans
Courtney Egan
Artist, New Orleans
Lou Furman
Turning Point Partners
Ariana Hall
Director, CubaNOLA Collective
Gwendolyn Midlo Hall Historian
writer and lecturer, New Orleans and Mississippi Pine Belt
Susan Hamovitch
Filmmaker/Teacher
NYC/New Orleans
Russell Henderson
Lecturer, Dillard University and
Organizer, Rebuilding Louisana Coalition
Ms.Deon Haywood
Events Coordinator, Women With A Vision Inc.
Rachel Herzing
Critical Resistance
Rev. Doug Highfield
Universal Life Church
Cherokee, AL
Joyce Marie Jackson, Ph.D.
Cultural Researcher, LSU Dept. of Geography & Anthropology, and Co-founder of Cultural Crossroads, Inc., Baton Rouge
Elizabeth K Jeffers
Dana Kaplan
Safe Streets - Strong Communities / Center for Constitutional Rights, NYC/New Orleans
Vi Landry
freelance journalist, New Orleans/New York
Bridget Lehane
European Dissent and The People's Institute for Survival and Beyond
Karen-kaia Livers
Alliance for Community Theaters, Inc., New Orleans
Rachel E. Luft
Assistant Professor of Sociology, Department of Sociology, University of New Orleans
Melana Luke
M. Denise Miles
Student, Tulane University School of Public Health
Damekia Morgan
Families and Friends of Louisiana 's Incarcerated Children
Saladin Muhammad
Black Workers For Justice
Ukali Mwendo
(Hazardous Materials Specialist, NOFD),President, Provisional Government - Republic of New Afrika / New Orleans LA (former resident of the Lafitte Housing Development)
Kalonji T. Olusegun
2nd Vice President, Provisional Government- Republic of New Afrika, Founding lifetime member National Coalition Of Blacks for Reparations in America, NCOBRA: Trustee, Div. 330 UNIA/ACL
Donna Paluch
Loyola College of Law, New Orleans
Thea Patterson
Women's Health and Justice Initiative, New Orleans
J. Nash Porter
Documentary Photographer and Co-founder of Cultural Crossroads, Inc., Baton Rouge
Gloria Powers
Arts Project Manager NOLA
Valerie M. Prier
Bill Quigley
Loyola Professor of Law, New Orleans
Linda Santi, New Orleans
Roxanne Saucier
Student, New Orleans
Tony Sferlazza
Director of Plenty International NOLA
Heidi Lee Sinclair, MD, MPH
Baton Rouge Children's Health Project
Baton Rouge
Carole Smith
fine artiste (and i deserve to be kissed!)
Florence, AL
Justin Stein
Neighborhood Relations Coordinator and Community Mediator, Common Ground Health Clinic, New Orleans
Audrey Stewart
Paul Troyano
Carpenter
New Orleans
Tracie L. Washington, Esq.,
Director, NAACP Gulf Coast Advocacy Center, New Orleans
Scott Weinstein
former co-director of the Common Ground Health Clinic, New Orleans
Melissa Wells, New Orleans,
Jerald L. White
Bottletree Productions, New Orleans
Melissa Wells, New Orleans,
George "Loki" Williams
Founder, New Orleans Oral History Project / Humid City
Morgan Williams
Student Hurricane Network, Co-founder
New Orleans
Tyler Wilson, Rn,
Pediatric Registered Nurse
Gina Womack
Families and Friends of Louisiana 's Incarcerated Children
Signatures from Activists and Allies outside the Gulf region:
Jim Ace
UNtraining White Liberal Racism
San Francisco
Ujju Aggarwal
Center for Immigrant Families, New York City
Kirsten Angel-Lambert
Art Educator
Philadelphia
Denise Barnes
Prison Families Community Forum
NYC
Scott A. Barton
Board Member, Southern Foodways Alliance, Willie Mae’s Scotch House Restoration Project
Beverly Bell
Coordinator, Other Worlds collaborative, Albuquerque/New Orleans
Charles Boylan
Producer/Co-Host Wake Up With Co-Op!CFRO 102.7 FM
Vancouver, BC
James M. Branum
GI Rights Lawyer / Texoma Regional Vice President, National Lawyers Guild, Oklahoma City, OK
Ingrid Chapman
Catalyst Project and Critical Resistance Oakland
Kym Clark
Founder, Prison Families Community Forum
NYC
Chris Crass
Coordinator, Catalyst Project San Francisco
Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
Writer and University Professor, San Francisco
Hannah Eller-Isaacs
Unitarian Universalist Association St.Paul, Minnesota.
Cathey Golden
native New Orleanian
residing in Boston, Massachusetts
Ramon Golden
Boston, Massachusetts
Priscilla Gonzalez
Center for Immigrant Families, New York City
Kevin Alexander Gray
organizer & writer, Harriet Tubman Freedom House Project
Columbia, South Carolina
Saib Isa
Software Quality Assurance Engineer
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
John Janovy, Jr.
Lincoln, Nebraska
William M. Johnson
New York Rep. Common Ground
Chris Kromm
Executive Director, Institute for Southern Studies
Prita Lal
Center for Immigrant Families, New York City
Jen Marlowe
filmmaker/author
Seattle
Sharon Martinas
Challenging White Supremacy workshop, San Francisco
Pilar Maschi
Critical Resistance, membership and leadership development director, nyc
Molly McClure
Catalyst Project,Oakland
Saiya Miller
student, Simon's Rock College of Bard
Great Barrington, MA
Meshá Mongé-Irizarry
Idriss Stelley Foundation , Law Enforcement Accountability
Christopher Monson
Architect and educator, Starkville, Mississippi
Claudia Montesinios
Architect, Atlanta
Jovita Natal
Prison Families Community Forum
NYC
Donna Nevel
Center for Immigrant Families, New York City
Cheri O'Donoghue
Prison Families Community Forum
NYC
Ricky O'Donoghue
Prison Families Community Forum
NYC
Beatrice Parwatikar
Pax Christi USA Ambassador of Peace / INCITE Women of Color Against Violence, Shoreham, VT
Ed Pearl
formerly of SNCC's Free Southern Theater, Los Angeles
Lydia Pelot-Hobbs
student Oberlin College, Ohio
former member of Common Ground Anti-Racist Working Group
Kyung Ji Kate Rhee
Executive Director | Prison Moratorium Project
Brooklyn
Marc Rodrigues
Student/Farmworker Alliance Immokalee, Florida
Marion Rodriguez
Organizer, NY Campaign for Telephone Justice/Prison Families Community Forum
NYC
Gabriel Sayegh
Project Director, Drug Policy Alliance, NY
Mikell Grafton Skinner
attorney
Louisville, KY
Susan Slohm
Organizer with SEIU
Albuquerque, NM
Matthew Smith
Architect, Seattle Right of Return Committee
(formerly representing Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility)
Rebecca Solnit
writer
San Francisco
Hon Andrew L. Somers Jr. (ret.)
retired Judge , Fitchburg, Wisconsin
Stephen Steinberg
Professor, Urban Studies Department, Queens College
New York City
Ken Stowar
Programme Director for CIUT 89.5FM the University of Toronto Community Radio station, Toronto, Canada
Uda Olabarria Walker
Left Turn Magazine
San Francisco, Ca.
Ivey Walton
Prison Families Community Forum
NYC
Sara Williams PAC
Carolina Peace Resource Center
Columbia,SC
Emily Winkelstein
Harm Reductionist and activist, Brooklyn, NY
Daniel Wolff
writer/producer
Nyack, N.Y.
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