If anything positive has come from Hurricane Katrina – and it is difficult to think of any good outcomes – it is that so many volunteers – among them young people – have come to New Orleans to help with its recovery.
Thousands of volunteers have come from all over the country and even Europe and done the hands-on, dirty work that needs to be done to get residents back into their homes. ACORN’s Home Cleanout Program has gutted more than 2,000 homes free of charge with the help of more than 1,600 volunteers, but there is still so much more to do.
I was recently pleased to learn about an effort by the Gulf Coast Civic Works Project to create federal legislation for 100,000 jobs rebuilding New Orleans and the surrounding area. If there are an insufficient number of plumbers, electrical workers, bricklayers and other construction workers, paid apprenticeships will be provided to teach the necessary skills.
The Gulf Coast Civic Works Project that is being proposed is similar to the WPA projects of the 1930s and early 1940s, which helped the United States recover from the Great Depression by employing more than 8 million Americans to build roads, parks and other public works.
Last week, students and faculty at 43 campuses kicked off the "National Post-Katrina College Summit," a week-long effort to raise awareness about the Gulf Coast crisis and promote federal legislation. The universities involved included NYU, Princeton, Michigan, Stanford, California, Tulane, Xavier, LSU and San Jose State.
Summit events included documentary films, including Spike Lee’s "When the Levees Broke," petition drives and an open reading of the names of the 1,784 Katrina victims.
The Gulf Coast Civic Works Project has received support from Congressman Bernie Thompson of Mississippi, Chair of the Homeland Security Committee.
May 3, California Speaker Pro Tempore Sally Lieber of the California Assembly will introduce joint legislation in support of the Gulf Coast Civic Works Project. The Missouri legislature introduced a similar resolution in February.
The cost is estimated at $3.9 billion.
ACORN New Orleans is the lead organization on the ground, providing leadership and organizing strategies and ensuring locals are at the forefront of the decision-making and receive the benefits of the program.
You can sign the petition or write Congress from the Web site.