This post was written by La June Montgomery Tabron and was originally published on America’s Wire. It is edited and republished here with permission.
Ten years after Katrina devastated New Orleans, it’s time for mid-course corrections in the city’s restoration efforts. The foundations, nonprofits, and government agencies working to restore the city should pause to ensure that their investments will improve the pre-Katrina conditions that existed in communities of color, and that the racial and class inequities endemic prior to the storm are effectively addressed.
[Related: 10 Years Post-Katrina]
Katrina was an awakening. It exposed racial fault lines that had been tucked away from view. Visits to Bourbon street yielded fine food and music, but failed to paint a full picture of the city. After Katrina, impressions of New Orleans, changed drastically.
When the hurricane struck on August 29, 2005, more than 80% of the city’s residents had evacuated, leaving behind those who were most vulnerable. Many who had access to information, transportation, and funds for hotel rooms escaped, but those without resources were left behind–some desperately sought rescues from their rooftops–to fend for themselves or depend on public services that failed them. 27% of New Orleans, households lived in poverty, including nearly 40% of the city’s children. More than 1,800 people died because of the storm, 123,600 people left and never returned, and the black population dropped to 60% from 67% pre-Katrina.
In the chaos and devastation that followed, one thing became clear: the impact of racial, housing, education, and economic disparities on communities of color in New Orleans. In the storm’s immediate aftermath, people had to reconcile what they thought they knew about New Orleans, with the city they now saw. How had we missed the racial inequities for so long? Many communities of color were more vulnerable and thus their residents suffered much more than wealthier, white communities.
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation soon responded to address the inequities.
The Kellogg Foundation had worked with grantees in New Orleans, since 1942. Given these longstanding relationships, the WKKF Board of Trustees was compelled to help the children, families, and communities recover. The board immediately approved a $12 million appropriation to help provide food, clothing, shelter, rescue, and relocation; it also maintained a focus on long-term recovery. The swift grant making helped attract other support, as WKKF funding was at times matched by other foundations; companies like Home Depot, Time Warner, AOL, Walmart, and McDonald’s; and by religious organizations and government agencies.
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Since August 2005, the commitment to New Orleans, has not wavered: 270 grants totaling $90.1 million have been approved in the last 10 years. Yet, we have learned that neither one foundation nor a group of foundations can successfully address these challenges alone; there must be partnerships that include all segments of the community, especially government, businesses, and corporations committed to providing opportunities.
Working with partners and coalitions in New Orleans, and the surrounding region, we have sought to lift families and children, helping to provide opportunities for them to thrive and an environment that improves life outcomes and restores hope. The number of coalitions and partnerships is unprecedented in our work; we are energized by so many disparate segments of society uniting and connecting toward the goal of helping these communities rebuild. The tragedy of Katrina has ignited a true sense of camaraderie in this work.
Moreover, what we have learned in New Orleans, has triggered a significant change in the grant making process at the Kellogg Foundation. We learned from community leaders that crime and violence in residential neighborhoods are desensitizing the city’s children, causing them to lose their sense of self-worth. A generation of young people is being rendered powerless, having no sense of security or protection; they believe they have no future. In response, WKKF modified its funding priorities and is now mobilizing its partners to help heal the wounds of children and young adults, restore their sense of well-being, and create environments where they can thrive. This work is part of a collective community resilience strategy, one that is a critical segment of achieving racial equity in New Orleans.
Ten years after the storm, there also remains a need to rebuild infrastructure and systems. For example, the education system, while improving, is largely failing to provide children with the tools they need to be successful. To its credit, the public sector recognized that the old system wasn’t working and boldly embarked on a new one, a system dominated by charter schools. But results are not universally good. Community leaders assert that special education and parent involvement have been shunned. In a recent poll by NPR and the Kaiser Family Foundation, 53% of black parents were concerned about their children’s education, compared to only 17% of whites.
Education is an area where the city should pause, work with the community, and make corrections to ensure that all children are receiving a quality education. Educational success, achievement, and job opportunities are all connected.
To be sure, some investments are working. In 2011, young Bryaniesha Burks was in a rut. She and her teenage friends were mired in poverty, “sad, angry, and depressed,†she recalls, because they had little hope that the so-called recovery of their city would ever affect their lives.
But life changed for Burks when she found Liberty’s Kitchen. Established in 2008, Liberty’s Kitchen is a social enterprise that transforms disconnected New Orleans, youth by offering workforce
and life skills training to unemployed and out of school teenagers and young adults. “I didn’t realize that I kept all that pain inside of me,†Burks recalls. “Every day, I would go about things in a negative way. I was a lost soul.†Now 22 and working at a job she loves, Burks says the organization’s leaders “believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself…They taught me to be brave.â€In the aftermath of Katrina, Burks’ story demonstrates hope and success. It was possible, in part, because funders such as WKKF worked with nonprofits, businesses, community leaders, and local government to support Liberty’s Kitchen. It demonstrates that coalitions and partnerships can mobilize together to address barriers and help change hearts and minds.
Overshadowing many aspects of life in New Orleans, is a racial past that must be acknowledged and healed. Portrayals of the 10-year milestone after the storm further expose the divide in the city. While many gains have been achieved, for communities of color it is not a time to celebrate; it’s time to assess the many challenges that lie ahead.
Clearly, hearts and minds on both sides must be changed. Racial healing is a national WKKF endeavor that the foundation is bringing to local communities, such as New Orleans. Meaningful change happens locally. The foundation sponsored a healing day on Aug. 25 that brought representatives from all segments of New Orleans, together — business, religious, community, academia, and others, to talk openly and frankly about race, its impact on the city, and how wounds from the past can heal.
As some champions are emerging, we do see progress. Mayor Mitch Landrieu made it clear in his recent public apology for the city’s prominent role in the slave trade that no conversation about the future of New Orleans, is possible without a discussion of race and an acknowledgement of the devastating role that racism has played.
Through our work, WKKF has grasped a better understanding of the trauma and barriers presented by structural and systemic inequities. Our appreciation has grown for the resilience and resourcefulness of New Orleans, residents, and for their hope that better days lie ahead. The seeds for healing and progress are being planted and will sprout and grow over time; we will continue nurturing teenagers and young adults like Ms. Burks. Her generation will be the light at the end of the tunnel.
A better New Orleans, is on the horizon, but we must recalculate, taking what we have learned to implement fresh, informed ideas, and racial healing must be a part of it.
La June Montgomery Tabron is president and CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
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