Social Stratification in the Deep South

After a unique experience of Bourbon Street we woke up to visit the Acorn Agency that had done so much for the city of New Orleans. In my opinion and I am sure that many would agree, New Orleans can be considered “a Forgotten City”. I feel this way because, the slow responses by the structured government gave off the emotions that the officials in power put those in the city on the ‘back burner’. I understand that it takes a while for a city to overcome the hardships that New Orleans and Bay St. Louis and the government cannot just sprinkle magic dust to make everything better.

Walking the streets of New Orleans was an experience in itself. You can defiantly tell that the city is not the same after the storm. I recall being hungry and wanting to eat at the Popeye’s down the street. After walking a couple blocks I got to the front door only to see that the restaurant had not rebounded after Katrina. This was a reoccurring event as I searched for food on the once business populated corridor of Canal Street. I ended up eating at a Chinese restaurant that had debris still piled up in front of the door from the renovations made to the business.

One aspect of the city that seems to have recovered well is Bourbon Street. It was thriving throughout the night even though some vendors said that it was defiantly different than pre-Katrina Bourbon Street. I maybe could not tell, because it was my first visit to the city. Once walking up and down the street you tend to forget that such a disaster had occurred and that the very street we were walking was submerged in water. Folks working and residents partying on the street seemed to mask their heartaches by the loud music and flashing lights, while the city itself is still struggling to regain its identity

Today we visited the totally devastated Lower 9^th Ward of New Orleans as well. Riding through the streets reminded me of World War II cities that had been completely wiped out by bombs and warfare. It was almost an unbearable sight. Seeing no signs of prosperity or entrepreneurship compounded with homes remaining unpopulated was very moving. Knowing that the Lower 9^th Ward was one of the most poverty stricken parts of the city, I wouldn’t expect to see businesses being reconstructed in waves but wreckage left by Katrina and the presence of almost no industry was amazing. I cant even imagine how the section of town can rebound, given the socioeconomic status prior to Katrina compounded by the affects of post Katrina.

It was hard to depart Bay St. Louis today for me. I felt that I had connected to the residents of the community and that they had left a permanent mark on me as well. Coming into Bay St. Louis I had perceptions about the situations revolving Hurricane Katrina and after my experiences in the great city of Bay St. Louis, my perceptions have done a complete 180 degrees. I thank the community for helping me change my views.

Riding along the I-10 interstate connecting the two devastated cities of Bay St. Louis and seeing all the destruction was a rude awakening. The images depicted by the media were disturbing, but to actually ride up and down the highways that served as evacuation routes was a whole new experience. It was hard for me to fathom how the city of New Orleans was flooded so bad until I learned of the faulty levy system and how it protected a city that was literally situated in a ‘bowl’. Riding over the bridges that were suspended over the bodies of water that caused so much harm to innocent people was amazing. I never fully understood how water could be so forceful until I saw the magnitude in size of the neighboring lakes and gulf waterways.

Entering the city was interesting, because this was my first visit. I am kind of happy that I had not seen New Orleans prior to Katrina, because it would have hurt me more to see how beautiful the city was compared to the hindered city that remains. It was still very hard for me to see windows still boarded up and business shut down even 2 years after the storm. I can hardly believe that the destruction is still so evident so long after the waters have receded.

Previously to today, May 31, 2007, I had always thought that I look at the world in a fair, understanding and though to had a great ability to make correct assumptions on subjects/experiences I encountered. Today, I found out in a very hard way that I the way I view certain things may be a little skewed and misinterpreted. After entering the devastated yet loving and strong community of Hancock County and interacting with its wonderful residents, I had a perception to how things were done and assumptions that challenged the correct idea/sense of community of those in the tightly-knit community surrounding the Bay St. Louis. This is hard to explain for me, and I’m sure that what I am saying might be tend to look a little confusing once transcribed into a typed word document, but I will attempt to explain my transformation of thinking within a 24 hour span.

After hearing an abbreviated account of what happened in Hancock County and listen to how the community responded in the face of such tragedy, I developed such a sense of respect and sympathy for those that endured such hardships. I asked myself questions, questioning intentions while challenging those who possessed privilege to explain why certain actions where taken and if those actions were only present because of that idea of privilege.

Following the hearing of personal accounts of what community citizens experienced my previous perceptions of the word community and those of privilege disappear. They more or less did not seem just. Coming into the interviews I expected that what I would hear would be very disturbing and shocking, but I had no idea that I would be moved in the way that I was. I remember catching myself from shedding a tear when hearing about the personal experiences of devastation. I noticed that the storm did not hold back from releasing wrath on certain individuals just because they possessed certain privileges, everyone was set back in ways I can only imagine.

Rebuilding a community with such history and tradition in the speediness and readiness in which the town is doing is so remarkable. Regardless of the differing socioeconomic status of those that inhabit the neighborhoods, hard work along with genuine kindness goes unparallel. I must admit I viewed the rebuilding stage in a very cruel and suspect way largely because of anger. Anger towards the situations Katrina put innocent people into, and seeing the various levels of struggle of those in different social classes.

I felt that I connected with the person in which I interviewed, not in the aspect of losing something of the magnitude they did, but in a sense that humans a sympathetic to those who struggle. I have never experienced anything resembling what happened with Katrina, but hearing of a story from someone that escaped the storm by taking refuge in areas surrounding my hometown. It made me connect with the person in a more personal way. I was knowledgeable of some of the hardships of those on the Gulf Coast but felt that I was detached from the situation because I did not think that affects of the storm were so widespread. After hearing such brutal stories, I have changed my outlook on how people use resources in the face of disaster. Even though they might possess those resources because of factors related socioeconomic status or society based privilege, how they used those resources to help others less fortunate is so remarkable and I thank them for doing so without thought.

I remember watching the flood waters of Hurricane Katrina on the news stations broadcasting on television 24 hours a day and feeling a sense of helplessness for those whose lives were being altered with no means of intervention. I also remember past natural disasters that affected the United States but this one was something different. This one gave me a different feeling inside. Seeing before and after pictures displayed on the television screen often made my jaw drop, from just trying to fathom what had just happened to so many innocent people. I never though that I would have the opportunity to meet members of the communities affected or even set foot in the very areas Katrina made landfall, but those thoughts became reality today as we visited Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

Today we visited and met the wonderful people of the Hancock Public Library, a place where the word ‘community’ takes on a more meaningful definition. This specific location was the place where many turn to as a place of refuge and as an information desk to help answer the questions, “What do I do now? Where do I go? Who should I talk to for help?” The determined, loving members of the Hancock Public Library community bonded together in order to utilize their resources to help ensure that they would ‘make it through’. This small yet very unique and strong city is often overlooked when talking about the wrath of Katrina and that is very disappointing. Not to belittle the horrible experiences of other cities/towns affected by Hurricane Katrina, this is the location where Katrina introduced herself to our land. The devastation was so intense it is amazing how well the community has rebounded by rebuilding, reorganizing, while pushing forward to make the area they all grew to know and love ‘home’ again.

One vital aspect of how this city survived was its ability to utilize resources acquired through their extensive networks. Phone calls and emails to anyone and everyone that could help in any way where placed in order to retard the devastation caused by the storm. Though inconvenienced by the fallen debris and access roads to outside resources either blocked or destroyed, the community bonded together when the odds where heavily stacked against them.

Looking at the city of Bay St. Louis along with New Orleans, another city severely impacted by Katrina, questions began to arise revolving around the idea of privileged vs. underprivileged. Bay St. Louis seems to have a heavy population of mostly affluent and prosperous communities who have access to crucial resources that made the wrath of Katrina dissolve faster than those in not so resourceful areas, such as lower socioeconomic areas of New Orleans and other cities with a higher poverty rate. Never to discredit all the hard work of those in the great communities of Bay St. Louis, I feel that our society caters to the more affluent peoples of our nation compared to those less fortunate who had to struggle not because of their stubbornness to not leave when warned, but the unavailability to do so. This catering can come in the forms of quicker response times, temporary living spaces to receiving Federal Aid from organizations such as FEMA.

The lack of opportunity can be caused by numerous reasons such as the lack of networks constructed and connected through privilege (economic/financial). Those in the lower income areas of New Orleans did not possess the wherewithal to escape, or even rebuild after the storm mainly because of socioeconomic status and the governments capitalistic nature, where those with assets and of higher socioeconomic status receive aid faster and qualify to more support in my different areas of our society. Not to dishonor the strong efforts made by prosperous communities faced with the obstacle to overcome such circumstances, some did not have the opportunity to overcome those same obstacles no matter how determined they were to succeed. Our nation/society is just not set up that way. It is structured so that those of wealth are given advantages quicker than those less fortunate, even though they may be equally deserving of the same benefits.

This is a problem that doesn’t just show its face when natural disasters occur such as the terrible event Hurricane Katrina. The same struggles and unequal opportunities are present when someone who needs a organ transplant is overlooked while someone of higher socioeconomic status slides up the donor list because they ‘know somebody’ or have the networks/connections to get when they need. Not to say that networking a working hard to have access to certain resources is wrong, but to believe in this idea during such a dreadful disaster is not right, especially when people’s lives are at risk in conjunction with a community’s way of life. I believe that the contrast of how the communities of Bay St. Louis and New Orleans rebounded is closely linked to this idea of privilege/socioeconomic status overrides necessity/morality.

When we use the word community, there are questions that are attached to this strong word as well such as, “Which ‘community’ are you referring to? Does that community just incorporate those who are similar to you, not just geographically but economically? What privileges are available for this so called ‘community’, and does everyone in this group have access to these same privileges?” These might seem like trivial questions linked to a word that is self explanatory but it our society today, the idea of community has various meanings according to your socioeconomic status and way of live which leads to the problems we have in our nation today.

Coming into today, I had always wondered how laws for civil rights were passed into law, because other than hearing about the historic marches, there is little said about the legislative aspect of fighting segregation. Once we visited the Southern Poverty Law center in downtown Montgomery, Alabama, I got a lot of my questions answered. Outside the S.P.L.C is an extraordinarily great memorial with the powerful words of Rev. Dr. Martin L. King Jr. along with important dates of the civil rights movement. Aside from what was on the exterior on the building, there were equally important memorials inside.

The film that we viewed inside the S.L.P.C was full of images that I had never seen before in previous documentaries. It explained the various court decisions and some of the litigations that are present in our society today. I was so surprised to see that so many hate groups are still active today. With 4 hate groups within a 30 mile radius of my hometown, it raised my attention to how things really are where and how people really think in my surroundings.

The interesting concept that caught my attention is the connection with the 1996 Olympic bombing and the bomber Eric Rudolph. I had always wondered how he managed to escape and remain hidden for so long. He was later found in a neighboring city (30 miles west) of Asheville, NC, my hometown. His connection to a hate group located in that area gave him the resources to hide for so long. That conspiracy caught me off guard. In my hometown there had been bombings of abortion clinics also linked to Eric Rudolph. One of the beliefs of the alleged hate group found in the area is the opposition to abortion. With so many hate groups functioning silently but effectively is a scary thought for me to think about. It also reinforces the idea that things revolving around hate have not disappeared over the past 40 years of equal rights legislation which is very disappointing.

Today was a very moving day. Throughout my life I had often seen documentaries on the history channels or been shown a film in a class in school but today I was able to see a real life replica of the images I saw through the television. Coming into today, I had no idea what to expect, because I did not know much about the National Park we were visiting. Upon arrival I had the thought of “What are we doing here? Why do I just see picnic tables and open fields?” I had no idea what the Park had in store for us.

After briefly walking into the building, we watched a very moving film about the legendary march form Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. The images of government officials advocating the brutality of African Americans, crazed police dogs ripping clothes of demonstrators, policemen beating people forcefully with Billy-clubs dad not need words to signify their intensity. It was hard to watch and hear some of the scenes shown in the film; because it made me feel a sense of anger against those who inflicted such pain on innocent African Americans.

Following the film, I walked around the museum only to see other disturbing images and displays of hatred and hardships placed on African Americans Displays such as ‘tent city’ really moved me as well. The thought that white land owners had the heart to move full families with children off of their land, out of their homes, forcing them to live in inhumane housing made me very angry as well. I can’t even fathom how it must have been to be forced out of your home and live in an Army tent for the duration those families did.

Upon returning to the hotel, we had a very interesting reflection session. It was unique in how we discussed issues because for a little portion of the session only African American students were allowed to respond in order to let the Caucasian students in the class hear how the black in our group felt about certain issues. This was a nice way to see that even though we are encountering civil rights issues in a non-personal level per say, fellow classmates are victims of similar hatred and discrimination nowadays.

Walking to the Capitol building downtown after reflections was a moving experience for me. It was just amazing to me to think that I was walking in the exact footsteps of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with thousands of followers for such a great cause closely following behind him. Taking pictures of the neighboring church adjacent to the Capital building that strongly believed in segregation was astonishing. I would not have thought that the two totally different historical places would be so close in relation to each other. Seeing the Capital building & Confederate Memorial sitting at the top of the hill overlooking the city gave me a sense that those discriminatory beliefs overshadowed every piece of the city and surrounding areas.

Looking at the itinerary for today, Sunday, I was really excited to attend a church service at the legendary 16^th Street Baptist that we briefly got to visit yesterday. Coming into the day I had learned a lot about the history encircling the historic church and to finally having the opportunity to attend and actually listen to a sermon and interact maybe with those who were member of the civil rights movement had me eager to arrive at the church. Visiting this church service was more than just a different experience because it was a new place geographically but in the aspect of religion. I grew up in an African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (AME Zion) in the south, but had never been a part of a congregation of a Baptist based church. I was very eager to see the differences between what is taught as well as the atmosphere of the church in itself.

Finally arriving at the church I was not surprised to hear the Gospel Choir singing very lively songs and the congregation being majority African American; this is something I am very accustomed to. One thing that was different was that the pastor did not wear a traditional robe, mainly traditionally worn in Methodist affiliated churches. The hospitality from the members of the church was nothing less than what I expected. I had a feeling that the members would be very accepting to our traveling group and even the Pastor made a point acknowledge that we were there to the congregation. As far as the sermon itself, I was very intrigued by what the Pastor had to say but more importantly, the delivery. I grew up in a church where a similar style of preaching was present, but being absent from service at my church recently made me forget a little about how it felt to be empowered by such strong speaker. The Gospel choir selections throughout the service were a very entertaining part of the morning. I love hearing traditional songs sung with a lot of passion such as the member displayed today in their performances.

After experiencing the 16^th Street Baptist church in person made me really understand how powerful and valuable that particular church was in the civil rights movements. Listening to the Pastor preach the word and seeing the response he received made it very evident that their church was a very important element of the community members’ lives. I feel that the church is still important to many that were in attendance, but I feel that back when issues such as civil rights we present the church, with a much larger following, the members felt an even closer connection to the church and made it easier to bond together to fight the greater evil outside the church walls.

Before going into downtown Birmingham today, I was very excited to be able to visit the 16^th Street Baptist Church and to meet those who experienced the mayhem that occurred on the streets during that time. Previously, I had learned about what happened at the Church but to finally be able to put a ‘face’ on the material made me very anxious to see the sites of downtown. Not only was I excited to visit the legendary church but to walk in the neighboring Kelly Ingram Park where police brutality and civil rights avocation had occurred in years past.

I was not surprised by too many things today, except for the fact that the 16^th Street Baptist Church was closed for the day. I was really looking forward to going into the basement to see the memorial for the 4 girls killed and to feel how it would have been to be in the room that was the setting for such a vicious form of terrorism. Sitting outside of the church in Ingram Park, I began to reflect along with some of my classmates about how cruel it was to hurt such innocent children in the bombing and by police force used during the marches. I began to gain a sense of anger, not geared to a particular group of individuals but a general sense of frustration of why the world functions like it does and how humans can be so cruel in their intentions.

I really enjoyed talking to Mrs. Peggy Heidi, Judge Helen Shores Lee and Barbara Shores! Growing up I had always heard about experiences with segregation from my father, but to hear about personal accounts from those in one of the most historic cities in the south. I was taking by surprise when the Shores sisters talked about the bombings of their homes and the threats made towards their family. I knew that there had been threats made towards important officials of the Civil Rights movement but to hear the stories with my own ears was very interesting. I know of family and community members that encountered racism and segregation but never someone who had experienced racism based violence as this level.

Today after a long day of traveling and sitting in Atlanta traffic we finally arrived in Birmingham, also known as ‘Bombingham, Alabama’. Before arriving, I had expectations that Birmingham was more of an urban society but being we haven’t made ventured into the city, I haven’t seen much urbanization. I have never been to Birmingham, but knowing its history made me believe that the atmosphere was going to be more racism based than other areas I have been. After interacting with some of the people here I noticed that some were just nice southern country folks like I am used to dealing with back home and in other parts of the south.

Once entering the restaurant, Irondale Cafe, I felt a sense that many of the customers were taking notice of the large diverse group that had came through the door. I do not feel that the only reason the customers were paying attention to out traveling group because of our quantity of persons but maybe because of the ethnic makeup of our group. In our traveling group, there are 6 black males and about 8 young white female students; no white males in our group. In the society of Birmingham, interacting with a group with the ethnic makeup we possess, may not be viewed the same as in another place not so ‘southern’ as this city. Many of the customers in the restaurant were older white couples that probably grew up/lived in the very segregated Birmingham, and probably believe some of the same ideas which were present during that time such as in aspects of racism. I noticed that there were no other black customers in the Cafe other than those on this trip which made me ask the question to myself, “Why are there not more blacks here?”

I did not have many interactions with many community members except for the waiter in the restaurant where we ate dinner. He was a very down to earth young man who engaged in friendly conversation contradicting my expectations of how white males would act when in contact with a group such as ours. I feel that in order to understand how some of the older citizens of Birmingham perceive black males or maybe even a group with the ethnic composition we possess, we must realize how things were (the culture) in the segregated south. In a reading from author Paul D. Escott he discussed how it was different interacting with Southerners and how polite the individuals were even though they may not particularly like every expect about you, or your way of thinking. I can see how that plays into society by examining our experience at the Irondale Cafe. I feel based of Escott and my interactions growing up in the South, that even though the staff and maybe some of the patrons of the Cafe may have came across as friendly and accepting us being there, but they probably have a harsh and maybe evil perception of us, because of the southern tradition of being nice and humble, those feelings would never be expressed.

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