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This is criminal: How Katrina was used to drive Blacks from New Orleans

August 28, 2025

Hurricane Katrina's devastation in New Orleans revealed systematic neglect and mistreatment of Black residents, according to the article republished from Black Agenda Report's 20th anniversary Katrina coverage. The article details how government agencies like FEMA actively hindered rescue efforts while private mercenaries and vigilante groups were allowed to patrol and target Black residents. The catastrophe is framed not merely as a natural disaster but as an opportunity used to displace Black New Orleanians, with the author Malik Rahim providing firsthand testimony about the conditions in Algiers, the only unflooded neighborhood.

Who is affected

  • Black and poor residents of New Orleans
  • The 1,833 people reported dead across the Gulf Coast (described as "surely an undercount")
  • Residents trapped on rooftops, top floors, streets, highways, convalescent homes, and prisons
  • Black people who were shot by white police and vigilantes
  • Thousands of mostly Black people locked down in the Superdome

What action is being taken

  • Black Agenda Report is republishing Malik Rahim's firsthand account from 2005 as part of their 20th anniversary Katrina coverage
  • The Bay View is sharing this republication after losing their original Katrina coverage when their website was destroyed in 2006
  • Malik Rahim is providing updates to complement his original reporting

Why it matters

  • The article challenges the narrative that Katrina's aftermath was merely a natural disaster, instead framing it as deliberate neglect and racism
  • It documents how government agencies and local authorities allegedly used the hurricane as a pretext to displace Black residents from New Orleans
  • It preserves firsthand testimony about how rescue efforts were actively hindered by authorities
  • It represents some of the only coverage from Black and poor New Orleanians' perspective, most of which was lost when the sfbayview.com website was destroyed in 2006

What's next

  • No explicit next steps stated in the article

Read full article from source: San Francisco Bay View National Black Newspaper