This is my first post in a while as I have had a rough couple of days, emotionally speaking. At the church this morning, I thought again of something that has bothered me off and on throughout the trip and hit home most especially in Hancock County.

Primum non nocere means “First, do no harm.” Sociology involves the science of observing people and then analyzing how and why they behave the way they do. I am not a sociologist, but the techniques of observation and analysis are familiar to me from my doctoral work. What has bothered me is the risk we take in harming the people that we study through the very act of observation. I was uncomfortable at both the George Washington Carver homes and the Lower 9th Ward because it seemed we were close to the line, if not crossing it, of gawking at the residents of the neighborhood and causing them discomfort. A 45′ bus is not an easy thing to disguise and neither is a multicultural group of 23 people with cameras. A number of participants have already blogged guiltily about the hand-lettered sign on a falling-down house in the 9th ward reminding us that “1600 people died 4 u 2 take this picture.”

In Hancock County, students had the additional complication of carrying out a service project while at the same time being trained to observe social stratification issues around them. These blogs are wonderful tools for collaborative work but they are also a public display of research in progress. In the 72 hours we stayed in Hancock County, views of the community matured rapidly among many participants. Surface observations at the beginning of the trip often did not hold up to be valid. The consensus at the end was that this was a strong, closely knit community trying its best to recover from a storm of unnatural ferocity and restore the community to all its residents. We went to help, I only hope that we did no harm.

We got to New Orleans yesterday afternoon after our drive from Bay St. Louis. I’ve never been to New Orleans so I didn’t know what to expect, especially after seeing the destruction of the hurricane in Bay St. Louis. I may be completely ignorant, but I didn’t know that most of the damage in New Orleans came from the levies breaking as opposed the hurricane itself. Anyway today was sort of a weird day for me. We explored some of the city last night and by that I mean we went to Bourbon St. We had a great time. Certainly a different experience from the incredible bar scene of Winston-Salem, NC. Today I started to feel really guilty though. There are many aspects of this trip that are disparate in nature and I’m not sure how to react to it. I mean here we are hanging out having a blast on Bourbon St. and then today we go to the Lower 9^th ward which was obliterated by the massive rush of water from the levies breaking. I don’t know how to take that in. My mom made the point that in order to rebuild the economy of New Orleans people need to visit here and go out, because that will bring money to the city. I just don’t know how much of that money is going places it NEEDS to go. I don’t know what to think. I really don’t.

  Part 1:

       Friday, June 1st was our last day in Bay St. Louis, MS. It was a great experience to learn so much from the Hancock County Community. I was not one of the students that conducted the last oral history of the day, but I was glad to be a part of our group. It was interesting to think that we had completed our first week of the course and that only one more week is left. Everyone in the group has a special place in my heart. We left Bay St. Louis Friday headed to New Orleans and on the way we reflected on some of the experiences we had in Bay St. Louis.

Part 2:

    New Orleans, a wonderfully diverse city that has such an amazing culture and upbeat vibe to it. I was really excited to come to New Orleans on this social stratification course. I had an idea of what the city would be like but I didn’t really know much about the area. Our first night in New Orleans, I was able to explore parts of the French Quarters including Canal Street and Bourbon Street. It was definitely an interesting experience to go into a tatoo parlor for the first time:) New Orleans definitely has great night life and eating at one of the local restaurants, Oceana, I had some of the great cuisine that ths city is known for. Jazz clubs also add a lot the city because of the influence of many famous Jazz and Blues musicians from this area.  This night was a great chance to explore and just absorb some of the greatness that is New Orleans.