katrina and racism

[*hearts*]

i just wanted people to know that i really dont believe that their is racism involved with hurricane katrina....me and my family are white and we cant get any help either....i dont want people to feel like theyre the only ones, because theyre not...good luck

[JackinDe]

*hearts*

I noticed this was your "1st" post, so I wanted to respond so you didn't feel ignored. You are entitled to your opinion as that is what a Forum is all about. Discussing one's views and exchanging ideas in an adult manner with no ill feeling for any race, religion, creed or color. I'm sorry if you are in desitude need and maybe having a hard time. I would suggest contacting the local Red Cross and maybe a local government agency to see if they can assist you in your time of turmoil. Good luck to you and your family, I hope things work out for you.

Sincerely,

Jack

[missus]

Hearts, so sorry to hear this. I'm really surprised though as a lot of money has been allocated to help hurricane victims. Please try again, I know there is help for you. Don't walk out of there until you get help. Call CNN, ABC, whatever you have to do to get help. God Speed.

Missus

[JackinDe]

Missus:

You're right about alot of money being sent to help the hurricane victims. But sometimes the money is routed to the wrong sources and not where it was originally supposed to go. This happens alot when one of these fund raiser gets started. It's really hard to control. I hope she trys some of the agencies that you mentioned and not to give up so easy.

Oh, I like your flying green witch, so cool.


Jack

[tarbaby]

the katrina problem is not a white vs black issue. it's a timing issue. the gov was not ready..period. it could even be a poor vs rich issue. if everyone in that area were white we would still have the same result. N.O is one of the (if not the) poorest areas in the country. not everything that happens in this world is a race issue yet people like to make everything into one. we can get way more accomplished working together than working against each other.

[*hearts*]

thanks for replying, i just wanted anyone who felt that they weren't gettin help because of being a certain race to know that they aren't alone...as for red cross and fema, we've gotten what we can and now its turned into one big run around...we had fema come evaluate our town home around a week after the storm....we waited and waited to see what they'd say and then they told us that we had insufficient damages...well our home is in biloxi ms..behind olive garden, red lobster, and ryans steakhouse(right on the beach)*i know they showed them on the news a few times....our downstairs flooded, ceilings collapsed upstairs, and we have insufficient damage?.**im talkin we have stuff from those restaurants in our home**..i dunno, its just really tough..but believe me, we will keep bugging them until we get help ...well good luck to anyone in this situation and thanks to everyone who has kept us in their thoughts

[JackinDe]

tarbaby:

Right on, you hit the nail right on the head, for sure. Great comment.

Your closing statement says it all: and I quote from tarbaby:

"We can get way more accomplished WORKING TOGETHER
than working against each other."

Jack (oh how is Brer Rabbit) Is he still doing OK?

[miss sara]

*hearts*

I went to school there so all the pics have made thier way back aournd to me even though I'm not there now... Insufficent damage. Nothing on that entires strech of highway is livable! The casinos are in peices, there are buildings left... Holy Cow! So sorry you're having a bad time of getting help, as if the storm itself wasn't bad enough... My thoughts are with you...

[coco-pebbles-aholic]

Hearts,it really does come down to survival of the fittest with FEMA!I just hate dealing with them.U gotta be up for the fight early with them.Did u disagree in writing with their decision?

Here in Florida been thru a little of what u r going thru & I know it is tough.Don't forget about the United Way they can at least send u restraunt vouchers to eat out with your family(that gets expensive in & of itself).The churches are your best resources!They help a lot more willingly then any gov't agency.I know in Florida we have 211# to call for local resources maybe you can find that # for your location.

ALso wherever you are located at this point go to local Legal Aid office & they should have a flyer,listing,paerwork(whatever they wanna call it)with many resources listed on it.Also contact Habitat for Humanity to help in rebuliding your family home as well as they have listings & churches willing to have people come out & help rebuild for free.(I am Southern Baptist & I know our AMEN group helps with that sort of thing).Don't allow any pride to disrupt your rebuilding & accept help from any & all.It's there just finding it is the tough part i know.

FEMA may have done u a favor.I received monies from them last yr(I, too lost everything!Nothing I had was worth salvaging becaz we lost the roof on a home we were renting)They gave me $12,000.00 I saved every receipt to verify that I replaced beds,dressers,clothing,food,provided temporary housing while the roof was repaired,replaced vehicle tires.Saved every receipt!!!!!Within 6 months they contacted me wanting over $8,000.back ,not only did they want it back they charged interest!Now if you & your family r in the same boat we were that money was gone in 30 days.They claimed I still had it in the bank!I had to file bankruptcy to get them off my back & my county was indeed declared a federal disaster so don't trust everything FEMA says.

[missus]

Well, thank you Jack. BTW, I think tarbaby said her name is tarbaby because she is a tarheels fan.

Hearts, what Coco said about FEMA and anyone else. And what I said, don't leave until you get something. All of us pay our taxes (well, most of us ) and that's why we have thse organizations, to help when it is needed. I had a fight with them years ago, took me a year, but I never gave up. We had flooding in Superior, Wisconsin, would you believe.

Anyhow, some guy called CNN, and he got everything for his town, so don't leave out that avenue either. Thining about you and all who were affected by the happenings in the world.

Hey everybody, get up and exercise!!

Hugs to everyone.

Missus

[Educator]

Good Morning All:

I have been following your interesting forum from the beginning...
For those of you that may not know, I personaaly housed 13 individuals in our home.
I can fully agree with everyone of you as for the funding issues are concerned. I have delt with all of the agencies, personally, and OMG it actually gets my blood boiling! I can't stand to see human beings hurt or pained for things such as this.
Missus, you are exactly right, we all pay our taxes as well as having money taken out of our employee checks for charitable donations etc. I have been so fortunate in having to never to seek disaster assitance, but to have been so personaly involved with other friends of mine hurts just as much.
Noone asked for this nor would have anyone, the bottom line, whether the gov't was prepared for this or not the fact still remains that thousands are still feeling helpless, hopeless and remain homeless! That is what FEMA is about, to PREVENT these feelings of desperation and realities. OMG, as you can tell it just angers me in no imaginable way.
I want to be sure to mention to allof those affected out there...

There is a website that has been developed by a true philanthropist...greek word meaning,
"Love of People" I am very involved with this foundation and Keith, the originator, and I just spoke on the phone yesterday about so many angry feelings that are being developed, since this disaster, with organizations such as Red Cross, FEMA, United Way etc. He is truly a caring, understanding man so if there is some emergency relief that one may require please look up Modest Needs on the web. The organization is well respected and I was able to seek assistance for one family that I was involved with. I have been in contact with Keith for a while in reference to having the organization feed down into the County levels as oppossed to the Regional-State levels in order to becoming even more personal with people like you and I. Anyway, give it a try and look it up, they are really there to help!
Good Luck to all of you and God's Blessings are being sent your way! Hang in there, you are worth every bit of relief that exists, don't give up!

Tammy

[coco-pebbles-aholic]

u took the words outtat my mouth about modest needs.I was just gonna put it on here for her.
I have heard so much positive stuff about the people who run the site.

Hope all is well your way.

[CoolWhip]

I know how you feel. Iam from the Mississippi Gulfcoast (Biloxi) My husband and I worked at 2 of the casinos -the Grand in biloxi and the Palace. My work was split in two accross the road and his had parts missing We lived 2 blocks from the beach facing the surge.We have nothing left.Fema is paying for our low income apt. We still dont have jobs. Its very hard feeling like you have been yanked out of your life and the "reset" button has been pushed. Ihave lived on the coast all my life. It was so beautiful.... It will be a very long time before she blooms again.As for money - those who need help can get fema, red cross , food stamps, and many churches.One thing we can really appreciate is that we are alive.. and we are part of history. May God Bless all of you and your family, n friends.

[JackinDe]

Educator:

Tammy: I must commend you on your efforts to help the needy. You are a great humanterian. Thank's to you and others like you, the pain & suffering that some of the hurricane victims have endured through this terrible ordeal will certainly be bearable because of your generosity and support. God Bless.


Jack

[Educator]

Jack and To All the rest of You:

Together We Will make a difference!

We will take everything good or not so good and learn from it. As we have all heard over and oer, "History repeats itself!" Not in my lifetime would I wish this pain and suffering on my WORST enemy. This has been the most unusual, ugliest happening that I have EVER witnessed and one that I would care NOT to witness EVER AGAIN!

So much pain and suffering and that hurts me, to know that aindividuals are out there and that we, Americans, can't make the pain stop.

As for ModestNeeds, CoCo, it's AWESOME! The whole idea behind the philosophy just puts a smile on my face. This is not something just for Katrina/Rita victims, this is something out there that exists for ordinary everyday individuals like you and I that can face uncertainty at any moment of our life without any control whatsoever sue to unforeseen circumstances!

Its not that I am advocating this foundation one way or the othere, its just that I have personally been involved with the aspects of assisting those in need. I have really and I mean really tried my share with organizations and agencies but NEVER have I seen one with the "philanthropist" idealogy behind it completely! OMG I am getting on my soap box but I just can't help it, something inside of me just pulls and tugs at me when things such as this occur!!! My husband swears I should be in Gods calling as a nun or something he teases and says I reflect and remind him of Mother Teresa...MEN! I giggle and tell him hes my lifetime case, in progress!

Hope this finds everyone feeling good about themselves, heads up high and knowing that being the best you can be is the way to go and like I said, "Together, WE WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE!"

Tammy

[2rodeo]

I live in Hattiesburg MS ,the 2nd most devasted area. The eye came west of I-59 and up I-59 to north MS. We are about 15mins east of I-59 and got slammed by 110mph wind gusts. Local power was out for up to 3wks, no gas for 4days. rural locally owned stations hooked up generators to tanks & timed gas as it flowed into gas cans to determine how much you got, there was a 10gal limit per person, I tried 3 days & didn't get gas.I needed it extra for the generator. These same stores tried to operate in the dark to sell anything they had on their shelves. The bread man came by the weekend & the lines were enormous. It was like we had a war zone. 6days later when I siphened gas from our boat (to travel w/gas cans), I went to Pass Christian (fyi:west of Biloxi) to find my sister. Last conversation she had 2ft water in in-laws house in Delisle (just 10mins north of the Pass) and the roof blew off, we lost contact w/no phones for days. I took a care package and found her alive although a different person. We cried together. We went to my neice's house 8blks N of the Grand Casino in Gulport & it was intact miralculously, she was 8mo pregnant,(she didn't stay). Sidewalk view was the Grand Casino parking garage & the hotel, but no casino. Guards w/barbed wire prevented us from seeing it any closer. As for New Orleans, their city failed them with the levee's. Issue is decades old. City officials ventured elsewhere. Being west of the eye recovery would have been quick. The news was hot b/c of the numbers of people and the fact that most were black. More intriguing coverage than MS. Greater New Orleans is of color with few percentage white. This was not a racial issue. I'm still figuring on how looting big screen tv's and sneakers are needed to survive??? Please,if you help route your money to Waveland, MS and Bay St Louis, MS these towns are gone, sticks, you cannot imagine, CNN and FOX ignored these towns. FEMA is just as you read in the news, slow and then fast to leave. It was 5 days later they dropped ice/water in our area. Red Cross came 2wks after. They were swamped with fraud as people repeatedly stood in different sites. A real body could not contact Red Cross until you stood in a line (or camped) for hours in sweltering heat just to get turned away after they met their 300 quota. Then try again the next day. The 800# is just a pacifier, those who did get through were on hold for up to 6hrs to get an application over the phone. We had little to complain about compared to the coast, even they had to stand in lines for days without a home to go to or knowing where their next meal would come from. Please pray for our Gulf Coast. Mississippi will come back. Neighbors helped each other dig out, churches fed us, friends shared the little they had. Outside help came too little & too late, but then again, we obviously learned to depend on ourselves if you take a good look at our neighbors in New Orleans they are still sticking their hands out. I'll tell them to call Mayor Nagin.......that's another post hugs

[leighleigh]

Hi all- so heart- wrenching reading everyone's posts. I am in Mobile & we got very little of the storm. Pwr was out for 5 days & I felt so guilty when I heard the a/c kick back on. I think of all of you every single day & take nothing for granted.
We as a family don't have much in the way of income, but I stay at home w/ kids & have time, so if anyone needs favors or anything, please let me know. I can always drive to MS & bring you things. Or maybe lend an ear or eyes here on the pc.
I get defensive when people that aren't from the Gulf Coast wanna comment on Katrina. We are very protective of our area & if you've never been through a hurricane, you cannot even imagine. I also want to say "Bless Them" to everyone in the world who has reached out for this disaster.
The media sadly zeroed in on New Orleans. MS literally has huge, gaping chunks taken out of it!
I have friends in MS & have heard that you can also contact the Salvation Army for help.
Again, I can't give much in the way of material things, but I can give myself, my time. Anyone can PM me anytime.
Take care, all of you....

[missus]

2rodeo, I'm so sorry for your troubles. You are correct that in the beginning Mississippi was not given as much coverage as New Orleans. But the main thing is you made it and survived. Thank God for that. I am praying that those 2 towns you mentioned will be rebuilt and everyone will get back to normal. As for the other issues, everyone has moved on and hopefully the next time something like this happens , the consequences won't be as dire. God Bless you and everyone in your famly and all of the victime in Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and elsewhere.

Missus

[Frankykeats]

Nice discussion