Race, Place, and Environmental Justice After Hurricane Katrina: Struggles to Reclaim, Rebuild, and Revitalize New Orleans and the Gulf Coast
This heavily researched and annotated collection of essays on the “geography of vulnerability” as found in the aftermath of Katrina is an overwhelming analysis of a microcosm of American society. Written by experts in environmental justice, land-use policy, and political science, it addresses everything from transportation infrastructure to social inequality and urban development. Although academic in style, it carries emotional weight. The numbers alone are powerful, as the years of societal neglect for lower-income residents of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast are laid bare. From quoting a misguided congressman who believes that all living in rural areas are farmers to the pathetically inadequate evacuation plan for one of the largest and most vulnerable cities in the country, the authors each have a distinct focus which together provide a cohesive look at how so many things went wrong after the catastrophe and how those errors were years in the making. With solid, fact-based conclusions, responsible recommendations, and chapters on rebuilding efforts, this title should serve as a textbook for today’s urban planners.