Stories from the Aftermath of a Hurricane

After the disastrous Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, I linked up with a group of folks from the Philadelphia Independent Media Center to head South on a fact finding mission. Starting in Atlanta, Georgia and heading West along the Gulf Coast towards New Orleans, Louisiana, we met with many community leaders, activist, volunteers, and residents that opened their arms and told their stories...

The goal of the mission was to understand the plight of the people, how the communities came together to rebuild, and find a way to let the country know of the real issues happening there. Of the many problems that people faced in reclaiming their neighborhood and overcoming the hardest battles to rebuild their lives... What I discovered was the unbelievable organization and support of the citizens, grassroot and religious organizations, and many volunteers to reclaim neighborhoods and communities lost to the flooding. The Federal and Local government created many bumps and dead-ends along every route to recovery, without the assistance of these groups and individuals the communities affected by Hurricane Katrina would be very different.

So below I have embedded the film that a dear friend, Kate Duffy and I edited from the footage gathered during the initial mission preceding Hurricane Katrina in 2006 and the follow-up trip Kate and I took in Summer 2007.

Thank you to everyone that made this project happen!