I have spoken to many of my friends this past week and asked them the following question: "What is the symbol of the Katrina protest movement?" There has been no consensus answer, in fact, most of the time they have looked at me quizzically. So I have asked an easier follow-up. "What is the symbol of the Iraq protest movement?" Again and again, the answer has been Cindy Sheehan. I have asked "What is the symbol of the civil rights movement" -- Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks are the two names that come up most often (the list could and should be much longer). Even the question, "What is the symbol of the Vietnam war movement" generally solicits the answers Student protesters or Flower children.
This is not to say that every movement should be monolithic with a Head Protester in Charge -- such movements have the liability of being easily targeted by concerted efforts to discredit a single leader (as has been done quite viciously to Cindy Sheehan). Nonetheless, it seems fair to ask, is there a Katrina protest movement and what (or whom) is its symbol?
Possible answers below the fold.
There have been many who have spoken out on the incompetence of FEMA, on the general fault of the administration, etc. But I think the fact that the cause of the destruction was an "Act of God" leaves us in a position to think, I can't well protest God. But the deaths of at least 1500, maybe 2000, maybe more (
at least 1,296 confirmed deaths in Louisiana alone), and the trauma of tens of thousands more were not an Act of God, they were primarily the fault of poor emergency management. And when I say "poor" I mean awful, incompetent, and felonious.
There are many people to blame, and there have been a number of prominent Americans who have been willing to speak out publicly and accuse the administration of incompetence. Are any of those who have spoken out symbols of the Katrina protest movement? Three come to mind, though they are all strawmen in the sense of being THE symbol of the protest movement, but I share them for lack of decidedly better options: Mayor Ray Nagin, Kanye West, and Celine Dion (yes, Celine Dion!).
Mayor Nagin is a complex symbol, because he is arguably partially responsible for the havoc and uncertainty that led to a failed evacuation and the mistakes made in the immediate after-effects of citywide flooding. On the other hand, he led the call for help when help was needed. And no matter what the state of planning was beforehand, there was a moment when he explained passionately that they (the federal government) do not have a clue what's going on down here -- at that point, I think America got it. This was a colossal screw-up and that many in a position to help (Coast Guard, FEMA, etc.) were not sufficiently mobilized to respond to a state of crisis which required all hands on deck. But Mayor Nagin's own political ambitions mean that he is not necessarily in a position to step forward in continued protest. This, despite the fact that he had a chance to be an outsider and a legitimate, though imperfect, leader of a movement to call for radical changes in the way that America deals with poverty in its urban cores.
Kanye West was the most vocal and explicit in linking the faulty response to Katrina to the conventional wisdom (at least of those on the left) that this Administration does not care about poor people. I think there is no doubt that it does not, or at least does not in any substantive way. Therefore, Administration = George Bush and poor people = black people in New Orleans, leads to the conclusion that George Bush doesn't care about black people. This itself is so easily denied (by George Bush) and not easily falsified (because the truth is a subtle sort of racism that is endemic to everything the administration does) that the mainstream media can't or won't seriously pursue this accusation. And Kanye West, though expressing his own frustration has not continued his criticism for whatever reason.
Finally, Celine Dion represents the empathetic response of many (white, upper class) Americans (okay, I know she's Canadian, but let's ignore that for a moment -- sorry Canadians). I can't admit to ever having listened extensively to her music, but her heartfelt donation of $1 million to relief efforts after witnessing the horror and desperation of the residents of New Orleans resonated with many. She was right. It was awful. It still is. Katrina remains a national tragedy. But again, she has not continued to be an articulate spokesperson of why what happened in New Orleans is not necessarily a surprise. The reality is that there is a growing disparity between rich and poor in this country. Until we fix it, every poor community in this country is more likely to be grossly underserviced in times of crisis and on every other Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, etc. of the year. Indeed, Celine Dion is in no position to fix that problem and no single American (or Canadian) celebrity is (not even Susan Sarandon!)
What surprises me is that by now, more than a half year later, there is still not a galvanized protest movement that has been spurred on by Katrina. The Act-of-God issue is part of it, but the reasons are complicated. Another explanation for the lack of a movement is that FEMA, Brownie and Michael Chertoff become punching bags that make us feel better but offer no substantive change in policy. We tell ourselves we have made a difference when we criticize fools. But what change do we want? Brownie "resigned", Chertoff is still in charge, and FEMA is still mismanaged. But do we want a better FEMA, no more hurricanes (that's not going to happen), or no more George Bush?
In Vietnam, as is mostly true in Iraq, the clear message of protesters was to bring the troops home and end the war. In the civil rights movement, activists called for equality, opportunity, and the end of the Jim Crow era. What would or should a Katrina protest movement call for? I would argue that at minimum it must ask for a re-evaluation of America's priorities. Why, for example, do millionaires deserve tax breaks when soldiers are dying in Iraq and when FEMA obviously does not have the resources (or the management) it needs to respond to crises? Why are we trying to build bridges to nowhere in Alaska when there are levees in New Orleans that are still underfunded and unconstructed! The long term solution to New Orleans and its rebuilding is complicated, but that does not mean that we should shut ourselves out from the debate. We should demand that the poor of this country are treated with dignity, respect, and given an opportunity to thrive. We should demand that the government explain how they will rebuild New Orleans, and if they chose not to rebuild all of it, they should explain their choices to our satisfaction.
I have been asking the question "What is the symbol of the Katrina protest movement" because some of my friends and I are involved in a small project of our own. Its aims are modest. We hope to help rebuild the New Orleans public library. Why? Because libraries are levees of another sort -- they are levees of ideas that stave off cultural and intellectual dislocation. I do not claim that what we have done thus far is a symbol of anything other than our desire to not remain silent. We are merely asking for donations from concerned Americans, and for every donation adding a symbolic book to a Levee for Life made of books. We are also hosting dialogues and panel discussions on the subject of poverty and inequality of America. But even this is a start. I hope there are others. God knows there should be.