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2019neworleansteentour · 5 years

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Day Two...

Perspectives from First Experience, June 28-30th…

Today was amazing we got to hear an insane story about hurricane Katrina and how this guy did his best to keep his family safe from the flooding water. It inspired me and explained why family comes first no matter what. We also got to see the flooding wall and seen pictures of what caused the flooding. A new thing I found out about their houses was, they keep there houses 6 feet off the ground just in case if flooding like that was to happen again. Overall my day was a fun, inspiring, and delightful day. -Elijah H.W.

Exploring the aftermath of Katrina and how it impacted the communities helped me see the world in a different light. Learning that a barge was the reason that such a catastrophic event happened affected me. Then furthermore to learn that the company who earned the barge didn’t had the audacity to pay 2500 plus citizens $110 each, when they lost their families, homes, and communities. To know that people were forced to jump out on a limb for safety is outrageous. Although this was my second time hearing Mr.Robert Green Sr. story is was a second chance for me to catch new information that I didn’t receive the first time. His story was very impactful to me and it helped me look at life differently. As the day progressed we were able to see Dillard University, a HBCU, that recovered from the hurricane. While the campus was very nice, I was able to pinpoint and see where the water was at when it flooded. This amazed me and made me think how far up did the students have to go? Were some stuck in the building? What were their first thoughts when seeing the water? Lastly while out in the French Quarters again I was able to visit the Marie LeVou VooDoo Shop and leave my prayers for her to read. -Roderick T.

Today I heard a speech from Mr. Robert Green, one who survived the tragic events of Katrina. While there receiving a powerful rundown of what he and his family had went through a range of emotions were in the air. With my heart beginning to sink more and more as he went over the horrific things that occurred. I felt pain for him now knowing that he lost not only his mother, but also niece (Joyce and Shanai Green) in Katrina. I loved being able to receive his impactful words in person and listening to his story. -Bobby H.

Today Me And The Group Was Told About What Happened During And After Hurricane Katrina With Mr. Green . While He Was Explaining Everything I Was Thinking Like I’m Lucky To Not Have Been In That Situation And I Felt Real Sad When He Said His Granddaughter And Mom Died Like I Understand His Pain During That . Also Today Riding Around In The Car Hearing Mr. Weaver Speak On Certain Things About African Americans Made Me Think Why Did White People Hate Us So Much And Stuff Like That I’m Just Happy To Know Everyone Well Almost Every Race Accept One Another . Also Tonight Walking Down The Bourbon Street It Made And Impact On Me Like Me Usually I Don’t Like Celebrating I Like To Stay Home But Tonight Taught Me About Going Out And Having Fun Just Live My Life Even If I Am Young.. Still Have Fun . -Shakeima J.

In what I experienced today, during a tour of neighborhoods around New Orleans, I learned and took away knowledge about the socioeconomic systems underlying the tragedy of Katrina and the power of perseverence and community in the face of hardships. I was made aware of the struggles that the people at the lowest rungs of society often experience first and hardest and how, through the coming together of every person and family involved, the sum can be greater than it’s parts. -Daryl C.

We went to bourbon street. I learned that it’s not about the ppl you have with you, it’s just about having fun. I felt sad for what Mr. Greene went through. -Jamil B.

Tonight’s reflection will be focused more on Mr. Green with his Katrina story and also seeing the damage of Katrina. I was saddened when I found out about the lost of his mother and granddaughter during the devastation, but I respected the way he found the strength to keep going. There were homes where you could see where the water hit at and I was put in a certain perspective because I got to see up close of what was happening at the time. When I saw was was left of the homes I was in shock because I’ve never witnessed things of such, some being only stairs left on what used to be a property. The fact that the Brad Pitt houses being built was good in a way, but I’m still in a rut with why they would use certain materials that aren’t of best quality. -Ayshia B.

Today was my last full day in New Orleans. The most important thing that stood out and impacted me the most was talking with Mr. Green. His story really touched me, and made me be appreciative of everything I have especially the roof over my head. I was impacted the most by his families story because they lost everything, and to think they only got their settlement in 2016 and hurricane Katrina was in 2005. All of the damage that was done and the settlement was only for $110. Also, riding through all of the different neighborhoods seeing where there were once houses on the lots, and seeing the different dates on the homes seeing how long these people had to wait on the insurance companies. Many homes to this day still aren’t done being fixed from Katrina and it is 2019, that’s 14 years and houses are still damaged. Today was just a big eye opener for me to be more humble and appreciate everything God has blessed me with. Also, seeing how strong Mr. Green was/is to this day after losing his mother AND granddaughter, and finding his mother’s dead body. -Kylah F.

Today was everything! This was my third time hearing Mr Greene tell his story, but this time was different. I’m not sure if it was because we had a smaller group and he was able to interact on a more personal level... or if it was because of my own personal journey I’m currently on. He said something that Made stop in my tracks and write it in my phone. He said, “If you are able to see your blessings, you are able to let go of your pain”. I just can’t stop thinking about that. It’s positive thinking on a whole other level. I plan on creating some art with that quote so that I can see it every day. -TeShania B.

Today’s visit to the 9th ward to see the devastation was really life-altering in my understanding of how people were affected by Hurricane Katrina. And to see the after effects of the cleanup efforts, and lack of assistance in some areas, was sad. I can only begin to imagine the pain and horror of those who experienced hurricane Katrina firsthand. I have heard stories from people who relocated to Atlanta, both coworkers and those seeking homeless services, but I didn’t understand until today, seeing the area, and hearing Mr. Green describe that day, how swiftly lives were changed forever. It brought a new perspective to my understanding of what happened and why. For hours I ruminated on the emotions, wondering and imagining the difficulty of living with the memory day by day, and ultimately I found peace in Mr. Green’s words when he closed by saying “counting my blessings helped me to deal with the pain.” I am still moved and wanting to know more so I can understand how to help other Katrina survivors that I meet. -Miriam C.

Perspectives from Second Experience, July 26-28th…

Today has been very impactful for me. Learning about New Orlean’s history allowed me to better understand their culture and gain respect for the people of New Orleans. I felt inspired at how deeply rooted & resilient Louisianans are. After meeting Mr. Green, I saw how his strength and loyalty carried the Lower Ninth Ward after Hurricane Katrina. What amazed me the most was how much they united & rejoiced together through the good and bad. I wish my own community celebrated with traditions and rituals like Second Line. With each service learning trip, I feel proud to be apart of WECAANN knowing that other communities are valued other than my own. I’m so appreciative of all the knowledge I gained today. Now I feel it’s my responsibility to educate and share their triumph stories to inspire the ones I wish could’ve experienced this with me. -Shauna J.

Today was a good day. Being around New Orleans and seeing the different cultures and how other people act was interesting and an eye opener. I love their accents and how they use different slang than us. Earlier in the day we went with Mr. Green to look around the neighborhood and we looked at how the different houses were built and what people did to their houses to protect it from the flooding. Another thing that I thought was interesting but I wasn’t surprised about was that FEMA took money and valuables from people’s homes. I wasn’t surprised that it happened because it’s something that the people who work for the government would do and get away with it. That could happen in 2019 and I feel like it would be looked at as something we “can’t control”. Other than that in all I thought New Orleans is a great place and everyone is true to themselves and keeps the culture alive and that’s what I like about it. -Jordan B.

Today was a interesting day, today we talked to a man who survived hurricane Katrina. This man actually lost two people very close to him his mother and granddaughter in the storm. After that storm people’s houses were destroyed and important things where destroyed. After talking to him we went to some HBCU College’s and they were very big and I think that when I go to college I’m going to have to pay much attention to my work because I won’t be able to get nowhere in life. Last we went downtown and just led walk around looking in buildings. -Derrick T.

I enjoyed New Orleans today. There were two instances that really impacted me. The first was going down to the 9th ward and talking to Mr. Green. Hearing him talk about how he lost his granddaughter by her simply slipping off the roof just evoked an extremely emotional response from me. It made me think about the little children I worked with and how devastated I would be if anything like that happened to one of them. I can’t even imagine what he felt in that moment. The second thing that impacted me today was our time on Tulane’s campus. It made me reflect to my time at Winthrop and how much I loved going to a predominately white institution with a strong African American presence. Winthrop was one of the few places that I felt at home. Dr. Mike spoke about African American’s not feeling welcome at some PWI’s but I never felt that and am grateful. I have enjoyed New Orleans so far and will be sad to leave tomorrow but I learned a lot and gained a better understanding of the culture here. -Aleeka M.

Today has been a busy, long day but it was most definitely worth it. It was great to hear mr. green story about his experience of hurricane Katrina and how it effected him, his family, and his city. Also it was a good learning experience when we went to the museum and learned about the drummers and stuff like that. Lastly it was good to experience bourbon street for one last time. It was a little more people out today and they were more wild from yesterday. But I had a great time in New Orleans and I would love to come back. -Iterrius J.

The second day of my New Orleans trip was very impactful. Mr. Robert Green sharing his Katrina experience was very enlightening for me. I could never imagine the devastation the citizens of New Orleans felt when Katrina hit. I was so disappointed in our government to find out just how much they didn’t do for the victims of the natural disaster. I found out that they turned people away from the Superdome and many people died because of it. I left the 9th Ward’s Living Museum feeling very low in spirit. They denied people food and other basic necessities, such as cold water. How could you do that to someone who has already lost everything? How traumatic must it be to lose everything you have and then also realize just how much your local and even national government don’t care about you. Also, it’s really obvious the way Louisiana sacrificed the lower 9th ward for the hurricanes. Almost as if they wanted the hurricane to wipe them out. Nonetheless, I am inspired by the way the people in this community have rebuilt themselves from the ground up time and time again. They did it after Betsy, after Katrina, and they’ll do it again every time. They see the light in the darkness, they find reasons to celebrate no matter what. It stems from their roots even as slaves in the Congo Square coming home from a long day of work to drum and dance the stress away. I can understand why the people who live here will never give up or completely turn their back on their community. I love the pride the people here have in their city. I don’t even live here and i feel proud of the people. I would love to buy one of the open lots or maybe even more and build the neighborhood back up in 9th ward. I’d either live here or create affordable housing for the people who used to live here so they can come back to their beloved homes. -Jzada J.

Seeing the lower 9th Ward was interesting. It wasn't as bad as I expected it to be. There was still plenty of work to be done but in all I think good progress has been made. Meeting Mr Green was awesome just because hearing the story from a survivor gives it a different life and depth. Seeing the Superdome and convention center gave me a better idea of just how many were devastated by Katrina. -Essence H.

Today has been a packed day. I did not expect it, but I received a ton of insights that I had not gained on earlier trips. When we were in the Congo Square a perspective was brought up that resonated with me so heavily: how the culture and pride in the people of New Orleans was instilled from their birth and is felt still to this day. And in conjunction with that, the lack of pride and knowledge of our history that most of us from the east coast feel because it was stripped of our ancestors hundreds of years ago, and I gripe with that every day but never knew the words to describe it. So that was powerful for me. Secondly, seeing Mr. Green is always a favorite part of our trip for me. His story is so moving for me, but hearing it as an adult was even more powerful because the perspective of life I have now is more expansive than before, of course. So when he said the water levels were above the flag pole, I imagined myself submerged. I made myself feel the unfathomable fear (to the best of my ability) that families felt trying to gather their children and elders in rising toxic waters and get them to safety. It overwhelmed me with sadness and prayers for the families but also gratitude that I have never had to endure anything so painful. But I wanted to feel it because it’s something we all need to understand so we know the true damage that’s been done and the blessings we all receive everyday. But Mr. Green and his family’s resilience and unbreakable joy will continue to inspire me every day of my life so I’m happy how story was refreshed in my mind. I wish we got to spend more time in the Living Museum but it will be my first stop when I return. As well as Burnell’s store because I am also inspired by the work he’s doing to bring life literally back to his community by feeding them closer to home. It’s a symbol of community and I thank them for being so kind to us and having us. Today was a beautiful day. Thank you NOLA for all you’ve given us. Can’t wait to return as always. -Caris A.

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