Don't Forget About Hurricane Katrina

I am sure that most American citizens, like me saw the horrors of the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. But after countless hours of footage of countless disasters on 24hr news networks I was feeling desensitized to the idea of tragedy. It was not until Spring Break '06 when I visited New Orleans with my college while taking part in a service project that I relized the actual horror of the situation. I arrived in New Orleans' Upper Ninth Ward on March 18th, 2006, seven months after the storm, and the city still smelled like a wet sponge. I had no idea how numb I had become to the things I saw on the news. So I am asking all of you that have not been to New Orleans after the storm and those of you who have as well, don't let the fast paced in your face style media let world politics takeover your mind while the aftermath of an AMERICAN tradedy is left by the wayside. It is easy to get caught up in how everything is screwed up. It is easy to be overwhelmed by the state of the world. But there are things that you can do and one of them is to get some friends and go to New Orleans and gut out a house. It takes four days and you can help a family get a huge step closer to rebuilding. And if you haven't been keeping up with the poltics be sure to read up on the elections and the effects of eminent domain. Most New Orleans residents, still dispersed across the country, were unable to vote in their election, while Iraqis all across America were able to vote by satellite. A very powerful speaker, Rev. Raphael g. Warnock, said recently at the Antioch College 2006 Commencement, if a fair vote is so important to an Iraqi democracy "why not try it in America?" The fact that New Orleans issues are making less and less air time is no accident. Don't let the media industry forget about the countless Americans effected by Katrina and Rita and don't let our Government think that we are not holding them accountable. I have attached before and after pictures of the house that Antioch College Students gutted during our trip this Spring Break. Helping to rebuild this Spring Break was the most approiate use of my time and I plan to go back again this summer. Who's coming with me?