Reflection on Article 5 of Textbook.

I must say that once I started to read this article I couldn't help but start asking questions about what happened and why they happened. I also couldn't help but ask questions like why does this happen and if this happens to people then this could be why it is happening. It was like I was trying to figure out a cause and effect type of situation.

I first asked about race and class. If persons were trying to flee and police were not letting them flee from the flood in New Orleans, were the persons being turned away white or black? I think that from a Sociological standpoint it is important to ask those types of questions because with the answer being either yes or no it can give an impression on whether or not discrimination or social class could be an issue on why some were turned away. Then there was a mention on how, "Lawson placed a more important emphasis on property and not on a human life." This can tell a person without speaking that the police department believed at the time that the persons living in New Orleans were going to spread crime from their town to the town the evacuees were being taken too, which was Gretna. The police department didn't want to have the violence spread and escalate. Plus by this statement that describes Lawson, and how they wanted to place a price on property. Shows how much they discriminate from those who live in New Orleans thinking that persons who live there steal and pillage the area and are no good at all. With that kind of thinking, why would Gretna care about those who might be less fortunate then they are?

When I read how the persons living in Gretna which is where this all happened at, believe that the law enforcement agency was correct in the way they handled the situations of cutting people off and not letting people be helped by staying in the city. The reason why I thought this was particularly interesting is because both white and black persons believed that the law enforcement was correct in their actions. This was interesting, it makes one wonder why they both feel this way as well as how long black persons have been living in a predominately white area? Last but not least, have white persons had more of an affect on a black persons ways? Like for example, studies always show that when different persons come together to live in close proximity sometimes one person brings and takes on straights of the other person.

Next there was a mention on how persons were not allowed to enter without a vehicle. This is somewhat of a bias statement to make. What happens to those who lost their vehicle in the flood? What do they do because they do not have a car anymore, DIE? That is what it sounds like the city of Gretna wants to happen to those who are now less fortunate then themselves. Also if one wants to go a step deeper. What if one can not afford a car? Are the people of Gretna saying that they are better because they have a car, and are able to buy things for themselves? The persons of New Orleans are not because something bad happened to them? People have the raw tendency to look bad upon those who have had misfortunes. It is something that people have always done and can not usually be ignored.

Lastly, the one thing that started to make me think is though it sucks that some people got turned away if the police department did not turn some away would another city have been ruined. I say ruined because over population, violence, poverty, social economic stimulus or the bringing down of property prices could happen to an area when something tragic happens. Though this might be unlikely, it can still happen. I just think that the people who lost so much when the hurricane happened in New Orleans got really screwed. That the city and police from Lawson and Gretna should not have done what they did to the evacuees. They should have helped them more. Set up housing and food destinations. Not turned them away like they were a peice of trash.