HUD Chief Foresees a 'whiter' Big Easy

the Washington Times ^ | 9/30/2005 | by, Brian DeBose

[television is just wrong]

A Bush Cabinet officer predicted this week that New Orleans likely will never again be a majority black city, and several black officials are outraged. Alphonso R. Jackson, secretary of housing and urban development, during a visit with hurricane victims in Houston, said New Orleans would not reach its pre-Katrina population of "500,000 people for a long time," and "it's not going to be as black as it was for a long time, if ever again."

[PAR35]

Ya I know, but my point is Bush staffers shouldn't be making it so easy for the race-baiters

Have you ever seen a picture of Sec. Jackson?

[Prime Choice]

Why do we keep playing into the race card?

I dunno...to collect the whole set?

[Prime Choice]

Education, education, education, then find you a job. And that goes for any race.

It is of equal import to note that no culture can succeed when the so actively malign anyone who is successful.

Cries of racism ring hollow these days when first- and second-generation Asians rise through the ranks of society even with their obvious ethnicity. This is because they do not tolerate (or glorify) punks. Every other "downtrodden" race here in America should take a cue from them.

But instead some minorities just cling to a crab mentality.*

* For those unfamiliar with the phrase, I recommend getting a bucket and filling it with small crabs. Watch what the other craps do when one starts to climb out. They all reach up and pull the ascending crab back down. That's precisely the dynamic that's going on in these "oppressed" communities."

[willyboyishere]

Of course there was nothing "racist" about the statement. And it should read "several black officials PRETEND to be outraged", because these race hustlers are nothing if not ACTORS very well schooled in finding EVERY opportunity to exhibit their wounded race-reflex. I have been in New Orleans twice in the last year and a half, and felt there was something doomed about the city---even discounting the worst case scenario everyone has carried around in his mind for decades, and that now has happened, there is just too much funky neglect that is already institutionalized there, it's too disorganized, even in the French Quarter, its perennial tourist draw, there is a feeling of being trapped in a downward spiral, and that too many things are operating on a shoestring, that is very unsettling. How New Orleans will find its way back into viability is going to be a very interesting thing to watch. And I think there is going to have to be some kind of STATEMENT from the American taxpayer before big monies get allocated there (too late, maybe?) that will make it clear to our politicos that billions of dollars are not going to be thrown down a rat-hole, or merely go once again to help solidify the power base of local politicians down there, ESPECIALLY Democrats, which is why they want to get thing massive funding thing going ASAP.

[Fenris6]

"Have you ever seen a picture of Sec. Jackson?"

Sure, but the question you should be asking is: how many know he's black?

[Triggerhippie]

Celebrate diversity.

[Maigrey]

placemark

[dennisw]

I doubt the Feds will fund housing projects that are 6 feet below sea level. Projects for the Blacks and poor of the pre-Katerina New Orleans. They didn't live in projects back the Feds sure won't build detached houses for them at 6 feet below sea level

[Razz Barry]

Well, if I were they I might not move back. That was a lot to go through.

[Lancey Howard]

Because he's a racist!

???
I thought Chinese-Americans couldn't BE racist?

[son of caesar]

ok, i read this article and this is what i can surmise.
THE SECRETARY IS ACTIN ALL LIKE WHITES FOLKS, KEEPING US OUT
YALL BEST SHOW WHITEY THIS WONT STAND

[Coldwater Creek]

We ditched Lott because he is a total wimp and idiot, not because of what he said.

[donozark]

No expert on Louisiana politics, but my understanding is that for years, elections were determined by approx. 40K Democrats in New Orleans. Of course these 40K were Black, for the most part. Now that the "New Orleans Diaspora" has scattered them (some as far away as ID,CA,NY)many may not wish to return home to NOLA. Democrat leaders fear this, and I feel it may in part be a reason why they were hestitant to evacuate them promptly.

Sad but true, IMO. But all know the south has been moving to Republican Party since Nixon and Louisiana was one of the last southern bastions of Democrats.

[avg_freeper]

So much mourning over the loss of a vote slave plantation.

[IamConservative]

That means the bbq is going to suck!

...and your next Po-Boy may be on a tortilla. Everything grows from a seed. New Orleans will be reborn in a new time. I would really like to see them do some good planning and zoning. How marvelous if the entire city had the architecture and granduer of the Garden District and Quarter. Move the urban sprawl out on the high ground. Use the higher parts of old NO to build and magnificant new "old" city. Let the below sea level land go back to wetlands.

[Gondring]

First time I have ever heard of "black leaders" suggesting that we deliberately create a ghetto.

Yeah, note that they didn't say "let the people decide whether they'd want to live on the closed base"...to them, it's all a game, not real people.

[oldcomputerguy]

"Why do we keep playing into the race card? "

The entire uproar about blacks moving back to New Orleans is based on them being democratic voters. There are many entrenched democratic politicians here who have no chance of being reelected if they do not come back.

And the bottom line is that the HUD secretary is right, they won't come back in the number the Demo pols want. Why would they? They now have much better financial prospects then they have had in years, a fresh start, a new richer town probably and help to get started.

[TexasCajun]

Well, don't you first have to have taxpayers funding the city and subsidizing those non-taxpaying consumer non-producers.

[TheFrog]

I though increased diversity was a good thing!

[wildbill]

I predict that real estate developers will gamble that the Feds will pour enough money into the levees to protect the city for the forseeable Cat 5 hurricane.

They will go in and buy out poor people from the low-lieing areas of the city and rebuild a new gentrified city for yuppies.