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The once and future New Orleans
February 2, 2006
Lately, news on the recovery efforts in New Orleans and other ravaged Gulf Coast cities has been reduced to fine print. Luckily, word has surfaced elsewhere, some of it acutely depressing (see LJ's interview with music journalist Nik Cohn). Then there are the vibrant depictions found in recent books, and while all of them broadcast from the past, I think they could serve as blueprints for the future city. Take Cohn's recent Triksta, a gritty valentine to the local "bounce" hip-hop scene. It points out everything that was right and wrong with the washed-away Big Easy: the energy and determination of its African American youth against incredible violence and poverty. Mayor Nagin and the federal authorities best heed its messages. If the black residents are not enabled to return, the city will never have as quick a pulse; and before that resettling begins, every effort must be made to close the gap between white and black, rich and poor, or America will continue to bleed its morals. The temptation, of course, is to treat Cohn's book as a tombstone: "Here lies the old New Orleans." But, in many ways, it's written the future, for better and for worse. Let's read and act.—Heather McCormack
Posted by on February 2, 2006 | Comments (23)
