International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 191

Endorsements “ This extraordinary book is truly a gift of love to and from the community which experienced, and is experiencing, the healing power of the Fourth World Movement. It is an intimate chronicle of struggle, work, joy, sorrow, connection and missed connection, told by the many par- ticipants in the struggle with humor and compassion. It is a must-read for organizers, activists, seekers, dreamers, or anyone interested in the process of individual and community transformation.” — Orissa Arend is a mediator, freelance journalist, and psychotherapist in private practice in New Orleans and author of Showdown Desire: The Black Panthers Take a Stand in New Orleans. “ …Moving and captivating…This book highlights the strength and perseverance that people have to overcome tremendous obstacles, find community, build their lives and to give those lives meaning. [It] underscores the importance of an asset based approach to community building, which is more than bricks and mortar, but also the personal connections between and among people who care about each other.” — Joe Kriesberg, President of the Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations “ The operation of writing this book clearly demonstrates the unique and singular work of the Fourth World Movement, a movement established over 50 years ago and still actively addressing the lives of families living in extreme poverty and exclusion.This book is bound to be a guide, a support and of immediate use for government and municipali- ties as well as for persons, organizations and institutions concerned with addressing what massive mass-disasters are all about. For that we owe deep thanks to those who had dared to explore the aftermath of such events in such a humane, person-oriented guide.” —Ruti and Jona M. Rosenfeld, Gordon Brown Professor Emeritus of Social Work “ Co-authors describe rich social ties among neighbors nourished by rituals and celebrations that, even in the face of economic hardship, led to their caring for and being cared for by each other. How different would life be in the most deprived neighborhoods of New Orleans if the policies that led the “rebuilding” had reflected the knowledge and experience of local residents, along with technical experts? How different would these communities be today if planning and rebuilding attention and funding had been targeted to studying their power, strengths and resources, rather than their weaknesses, suffering, and inadequacies? If we as Americans are to constructively respond to our next major disaster that disproportionately affects people experiencing poverty, we need to listen and heed voices like the ones spoken in this book.” — Christopher Winship, Sociologist, Harvard, with Donna Haig Friedman and Jennifer Cohen from the Center for Social Policy at the University of Massachusetts/Boston Not Meant to Live Like This Not Meant to Live Like This Weathering the Storm of Our Lives in New Orleans This publication is a collective work written by 50 members of All Together in Dignity (ATD) Fourth World Movement in New Orleans. The co-authors are people with a lived experience of poverty, as well as other community members who actively support the daily efforts of struggling families. ATD Fourth World Editions 2012 Editors: M. G. Olson, Karen Stornelli, and Maria Victoire Cover art work: Gaetan Victoire Cover title: the late Miss Emelda Johnson Cover design, interior design, and composition: Leigh McLellan Design Photography: Catherine Cotton, M. G. Olson, Francois Phliponeau, Maria Victoire, Maria Sandvik and other members of ATD Fourth World Movement. Unless otherwise noted, all photos are by ATD Fourth World Movement volunteers. Page 101: photo by Caitlin Mirra from Shutterstock, Pages 106 and 115: photos by FEMA from IP (Illinois Photo). Page 107: photo by Marty Bahamonde. Copyright 2012 by ATD Fourth World Editions Date of publication: 2012, Washington DC This publication is a collective work written by 50 members of All Together in Dignity (ATD) Fourth World Movement in New Orleans. The co-authors are people with a lived experience of poverty, as well as other community members who actively support the daily efforts of struggling families. ISBN-13: 978-0-934199-00-1 ISBN-10: 0934199000 The New Colossus Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. “Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” by Emma Lazarus, 1883 Engraved on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty “ I want to dedicate this book to my late grandmother Maslee Dent, who always taught me how to write. I remember when I was young she used to help me write poems from Aretha Franklin. I would write them and put it back in my drawer. I would never mail them because I didn’t have stamps. She would say to me, ‘Who will read them if you put them in the drawer?’ I would have never realized that one day I will be a writer.” —Sylvia Miller ix Contents Editors Note on Methodology xiii Foreword by William Julius Wilson xv Preface xxi Acknowledgments xxix About the Editors xxxi 1 How This Book Came to Be 1 2 Our Neighborhoods 13 Central City: Our Community 13 Irish Channel: Our Home 27 7th Ward: Our Family 39 3 It Takes a Village to Raise a Child 45 Parenting 46 Put My Education First 53 4 All My Life Was a Struggle 67 Affordable Housing Before and After Hurricane Katrina 76 Gone But Not Forgotten 81 xi xii Contents 5 Neighborhood Celebrations 89 Block Parties: “Laissez les bons temps rouler!” 90 The Mardi Gras Indians & Second Lines 93 Mardi Gras Parades & The Flambeaux Carriers 96 Going fishing is mind relaxing 98 6 Hurricane Katrina and Its Aftermath 99 The Right to Return 124 Rebuilding New Orleans 133 7 It’s All About HOPE 137 8 What is ATD Fourth World Movement? 143 ATD Fourth World Movement in New Orleans, Louisiana 144 Supporters’ Involvement with ATD Fourth World Movement 158 Afterword 163 Appendix A: Co-author Biographies 173 Appendix B: International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 191 Appendix C: ATD Fourth World Movement Programs & Activities 193 Editors Note on Methodology This volume is based in large part on the first hand knowledge and testi- mony of New Orleanians who live in persistent poverty. The interviews were recorded and transcribed by ATD Fourth World Movement Volunteers. The vernacular used by black New Orleanians was as faithfully written as possible. New Orleans is famous for its odd accents—and not all interviewees adhere to the same phonetic rules—that often combine southern drawls and city slicker-isms, which beget new sounds for old words. The evergreen example is the sound “earl” for “oil” or “boil,” as in, “Let’s go down to that crawfish bearl.” The original words of the interviewees remain sacred to this book’s purpose and its documentation of these people’s histories in their own voice. For clarity and space, sections of interviews have been removed for undue repetition either within one person’s own narrative or among the fifty interviews conducted. Verbal crutches, like “um,” “you know,” “I think that” and “ya heard me,” have been edited out unless necessary for emphasis or the rhythm of speech. Prepositions and grammar have only been amended when in the service of the above editing. Interviewees often cite Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath with the word “storm,” which by no means denies that the flooding was a man-made disaster caused by the failure of several levees. Throughout the process, the interviewees were provided with updated texts to approve or reject the revisions. This process of consultation built accountability between the book’s editors and largely resolved the ethical question of how to responsibly shorten what would have been a 400-page book without losing the most important part: the authentic voice of these New Orleanians. Chapters were organized around recurring themes of everyday life, as well as the collective traumas that the interviewees faced and continue to xiii xiv Editor’s Note on Methodology face. However, many themes overlap and intersect as they do in life. While the book is arranged to have you read a single theme from different per- spectives. The index planned for the second edition will list every person and their quotes throughout all sections of the book, which may allow you, the reader, to have a cumulative understanding of each individual’s character and circumstances. Foreword William Julius Wilson Harvard University The human suffering of persistent urban poverty is not limited to the lack of basic material resources. Persistent urban poverty is also strongly associ- ated with factors that exacerbate it and increase the likelihood that it will become inter-generational. These factors include social isolation from the broader society, inadequate access to employment opportunities, children’s prolonged exposure to dysfunctional schools, and strains on family and family relationships. One disturbing fact about persistent urban poverty is that it disproportionately affects African Americans. While poverty is painfully present in all groups in America, there is clearly a lack of balance in the rates of poverty in urban neighborhoods. The fact that a much higher proportion of black Americans experience persistent urban poverty is one of the lega- cies of segregation and discrimination.

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