By D. Kevin McNeir
Special to the AFRO
kmcneir@afro.com

When the first official public warnings of a tropical depression, then located over the Bahamas, were issued on Aug. 23, 2005 by the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Fl., few could have predicted that it would become one of the deadliest hurricanes in U.S. history. But by the morning of Aug. 28, almost 24 hours before the storm made landfall near Buras-Triumph, La., the National Weather Service warned of “devastating damage expected,” with “most of the area expected to be uninhabitable for weeks – perhaps longer.”

Twenty years later, Lt. Charles Brown, a paramedic employed by New Orleans EMS, the city’s designated 911 emergency medical services provider, said memories of Hurricane Katrina remain etched in his mind and are often the source of his nightmares. 

“It was something I will never forget and never want to experience again,” said Brown, now 65. The 40-year veteran of New Orleans EMS was dispatched to canvas the city as part of search and rescue operations. 

“Sometimes I would get requests from friends or family members who were looking for someone they cared about and had not been able to find nor heard from them,” Brown said. “There were bodies everywhere and it was hard to come back with bad news…but that was my job.”

Brown, while unwilling to yield to conspiracy theories, said he has often wondered if the delay in rebuilding certain sections of the city was intentional. 

“The entire city was destroyed, but the Lower Ninth Ward was where the worst damage occurred and my colleagues and I found a lot of Black bodies,” he said. “But the real tragedy for many Blacks who survived is when they tried to return to New Orleans, they were priced out.”

“Property values had skyrocketed and with many Black families passing along property from one generation to another, but without legal documentation, those who returned were forced to sell their homes or land for pennies on the dollar.” 

A woman’s passion for the earth fuels push for neighborhood restoration 

After the spotlight which illuminated the tragedy in New Orleans dimmed, those who remained realized that it would take years to rebuild and revitalize their beloved city. 

Rashida Ferdinand took on the task of advocating for neighborhood restoration and disaster recovery initiatives that would benefit the poor and people of color in New Orleans. 

In 2008, with the support of Lower Ninth Ward residents and stakeholders, she founded the Sankofa Community Development Corporation (SCDC), a nonprofit organization whose first project was the development of a monthly community hub for local food growers, musicians, chefs, merchants and artists.

“I was born in D.C. while my father was in college, but my family is 100 percent New Orleans, born and raised, so this city is where my heart belongs,” said Ferdinand, who serves as SCDC’s CEO. 

Ferdinand noted that while the need for building more homes, strengthening infrastructure systems and securing investments for economic development was apparent in the aftermath of Katrina, what was often overlooked was the necessity of providing fresh and healthy foods that could be easily distributed to residents.

“You can’t get people to return if there’s nowhere for them to live and no food for them to eat,” she said. “Someone has to focus on ecosystems, the shifts that continue to occur in our local environment, and what’s happening to the quality of our groundwater – things that require collaboration with local businesses, and both the federal and local governments.” 

Ferdinand said she’s long had a passion for the earth and nature and because she comes from a family of community activists, the projects she leads today are simply part of her DNA.

“As a child, my family created a space – a school – that focused on education and community building,” she said. “Even as a little girl, I recognized how interconnected we are with other life forms and the power of all the things that exist around us. Katrina reminded us that we cannot continue to do the same things to the planet and pretend that there will not be consequences.” 

Can New Orleans survive another Katrina? 

Brown said one truth that was confirmed because of the hurricane, when he and his colleagues had no other option but to band together, live together and totally depend on one another, was that we are more alike than unalike and that we are stronger together. 

“Race has always been a major, and often dividing, factor in New Orleans, and it still is,” he said. “But as paramedics, we could not allow race to divide us. We had a job to do, and we needed each other to get it done because people were depending on us. 

“That’s the only way this city will ever really rebuild – by focusing on families and not on racial differences,” said Brown. “Still, it’s important that officials admit that Blacks have been the ones who have suffered–and continue to suffer– the most.” 

Ferdinand said while she doesn’t wish to be the harbinger of bad news, common sense demands that leaders in the Gulf Coast region get their heads out of the sand. 

“The region is not prepared,” she said. “We must look at how our water systems are engineered, and we need to reassess the logistics of evacuation and pumping water from flooded areas. Ultimately, we must examine what’s causing more heat, which results in more hurricanes and other climate changes. We must prepare for those things now or face the inevitable.”