Can you believe it's been almost two years? Two years since the levees broke. Two years since the Superdome. Two years since "Heckuva Job." Two years since Bush promised the nation that his administration "will stay as long as it takes to help citizens rebuild their communities and their lives." Two years out, leading on-the-ground experts will come to YearlyKos to talk about how far we've come in New Orleans -- and how far we still have to go.
The news is filled with stories of heartache, continued loss and mind-numbing governmental incompetence. But is that whole story? How are the people on the ground in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast faring as they fight to reclaim their communities?
On Saturday, August 4, from 10:30-11:30 am, a panel of leading on-the-ground experts tackle those questions and more in addressing one of the most profound and vital challenges facing government and the nation.
Despite facing almost unprecedented challenges, the people of New Orleans are making tremendous strides. There's the community organizer who built a free health clinic from scratch. There's the housing lawyer who fought to ensure everyone could return home if they wanted. There's the blogger who pored through mountains of media reports and government paperwork to give his readers the most thorough, up-to-date information on the rebuilding process. Without the diligent and often overlooked work of New Orleans residents themselves, the city may have been lost.
The panel, moderated by noted poverty advocate and CEO of PolicyLink Angela Glover Blackwell, will look at the progress and setbacks of rebuilding – and what the government and all Americans must do now to help bring New Orleans and the Gulf Coast back.
Panelists include Malik Rahim, a community activist and co-founder of Common Ground Collective; Tracie Washington, a prominent New Orleans housing lawyer and president of the Louisiana Justice Institute; and Alan Gutierrez, author of the ThinkNOLA.com blog
Come hear firsthand accounts from the folks working hard on-the-ground every day to reclaim New Orleans. Saturday, August 4, 10:30 - 11:30 am.