Collaborative BWP Writing
BWP writers may use this blog for collaboration on their pieces.Sunday, August 27, 2006
Kelly's part
Devastation/Aftermath of Katrina
It has been approximately a year since Katrina hit the Gulf Coast of the United States. Approximately 1300 people were killed. Victims lost family and belongings, incurred a separation of everything they knew, and were distanced from their social support systems. Families affected by Hurricane Katrina have experienced both physical and emotional problems in the aftermath of the disaster. With the displacement of 500,000 people around the country, a more lasting effect has occurred. How did this natural disaster become a social calamity?
Fingers pointed to the federal, state, and local governments almost immediately. A bipartisan committee investigated the government’s response, and titled their findings, "A Failure of Initiative." They found that, "the failure of local, state, and federal governments to respond more effectively to Katrina - which had been predicted in theory for many years, and forecast with startling accuracy for five days - demonstrates that whatever improvements have been made to our capacity to respond to natural or man-made disasters, 4 1/2 years after 9/11, we are still not fully prepared."
Approval ratings for President George Bush have plummeted since Katrina. According to an ABC news poll on August 27, 2006, people think he has dropped the ball entirely on using the storm and its aftermath as an opportunity to fight poverty. Seventy percent in New Orleans lack confidence in the government's ability to handle another major disaster. And most blacks in the region and across the country think race has affected recovery efforts.
Hurricane Katrina was reported to be the most powerful natural disaster to hit the US and the most expensive with more than $40 billion in insurance losses. Reaction to Katrina has become a national disgrace. With regard to race relations, reaction definite cause for national reflection.
How does that relate to education? Public schools are a governmental institution. If the public does not trust government, that translates to distrust in the public schools. The US government let down the people affected by Hurricane Katrina because they did not react quickly enough and/or seemingly did not care enough to assist in a timely manner. Are the schools going to do the same?
The long-term effects of Katrina are difficult to determine. Rebuilding has begun in New Orleans. The levees have been rebuilt taller and stronger. Residents who have returned feel safer. Physically. What are the psychological effects? Social effects? We have not yet begun to understand the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Was the result of Katrina simple destruction? Or did it uncover fundamental flaws in our society that will allow us to rebuild our educational and social structure and become stronger, too?
Sources:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20876,20273054-2703,00.html
http://katrina.house.gov/
http://www.medindia.net/news/view_news_main.asp?x=13698
http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/HurricaneKatrina/story?id=2360060&page=1
http://www.planetizen.com/node/20936
It has been approximately a year since Katrina hit the Gulf Coast of the United States. Approximately 1300 people were killed. Victims lost family and belongings, incurred a separation of everything they knew, and were distanced from their social support systems. Families affected by Hurricane Katrina have experienced both physical and emotional problems in the aftermath of the disaster. With the displacement of 500,000 people around the country, a more lasting effect has occurred. How did this natural disaster become a social calamity?
Fingers pointed to the federal, state, and local governments almost immediately. A bipartisan committee investigated the government’s response, and titled their findings, "A Failure of Initiative." They found that, "the failure of local, state, and federal governments to respond more effectively to Katrina - which had been predicted in theory for many years, and forecast with startling accuracy for five days - demonstrates that whatever improvements have been made to our capacity to respond to natural or man-made disasters, 4 1/2 years after 9/11, we are still not fully prepared."
Approval ratings for President George Bush have plummeted since Katrina. According to an ABC news poll on August 27, 2006, people think he has dropped the ball entirely on using the storm and its aftermath as an opportunity to fight poverty. Seventy percent in New Orleans lack confidence in the government's ability to handle another major disaster. And most blacks in the region and across the country think race has affected recovery efforts.
Hurricane Katrina was reported to be the most powerful natural disaster to hit the US and the most expensive with more than $40 billion in insurance losses. Reaction to Katrina has become a national disgrace. With regard to race relations, reaction definite cause for national reflection.
How does that relate to education? Public schools are a governmental institution. If the public does not trust government, that translates to distrust in the public schools. The US government let down the people affected by Hurricane Katrina because they did not react quickly enough and/or seemingly did not care enough to assist in a timely manner. Are the schools going to do the same?
The long-term effects of Katrina are difficult to determine. Rebuilding has begun in New Orleans. The levees have been rebuilt taller and stronger. Residents who have returned feel safer. Physically. What are the psychological effects? Social effects? We have not yet begun to understand the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Was the result of Katrina simple destruction? Or did it uncover fundamental flaws in our society that will allow us to rebuild our educational and social structure and become stronger, too?
Sources:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20876,20273054-2703,00.html
http://katrina.house.gov/
http://www.medindia.net/news/view_news_main.asp?x=13698
http://www.abcnews.go.com/US/HurricaneKatrina/story?id=2360060&page=1
http://www.planetizen.com/node/20936
Archives
2006-07-30 2006-08-20 2006-08-27
