In Psychology we learn that correlation is NOT causation. In our class discussions we have talked about the unfair practices that the white race have imposed on the black race. This has been a great dividing factor for our nation, and has caused many debates.
My post here deals with an issue that has continued to come up throughout the class, but never presented itself for full discussion. With race back on the ballot (so to say) as we have discussed Blacks and the Priesthood I would like to turn to an issue that has been on my mind since I heard another class discussion about race. Being black in a lower socioeconomic status. Hurricane Katrina (now everyone roll your eyes) took place over 5 years ago, more recently disaster struck Haiti. Recently I heard a study that linked lower socioeconomic status to higher likelihoods of experiencing disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, and the earthquake in Haiti. I was there when Hurricane Katrina hit. I was there to help with evacuees. The majority of deaths took place because people refused to leave their homes, thinking that they would wait out the storm that was not going to hit directly. Did Race and SES have anything to do with the reasons these poor souls had to endure such tragedies? or was another factor at work?
Mayor Ray Nagin is culpable for the heartache felt by the residents of New Orleans. There was 804 buses that had 48 hours to evacuate people out of the city. That means each bus would have made three trips to evacuate 134,000 people. Problem solved.
ReplyDeleteWhat did the Mayor do? Nothing. Instead of acting like a leader, he acted out like a coward by making it a divisive race argument.
I think there are many factors that are considered in this situation. People's state of mind and attitude are different and could also be the same no matter what race you are. A stubborn african american and a stubborn white male could easily both stay at home and wait out the storm. That has nothing to do with race.
ReplyDeleteKort