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Is There a House in New Orleans?
By Kevin Berends and Tyler Westbrook, WHYnotNews
New Orleans, LA December 16, 2007— A week after arriving in New Orleans to cover the events William Quigley described in his call to action that laid out the details of the severe housing crisis still affecting New Orleans 2-1/2 years after the city was struck by Hurricane Katrina, many irregularities remain surrounding Mayor Ray Nagin's policies on the homeless, the displaced and the disenfranchised. Having stayed in a number of places that would probably scare most white people (we can say this because it scared us a little, being a couple middle class white boys) there is the sense of unfamiliarity and uneasiness at being out of one's element, but it is larger and much more foreboding than that. We were struck by the eerie and palpably obscene juxtaposition of people in expensive suits coming and going to City Hall in downtown New Orleans, while literally across the street was a scene directly out of the Grapes of Wrath with people living in tents, under blankets, cardboard and in some cases, even less than that.
We ourselves stayed with the homeless overnight, sleeping on cardboard, in the rain, in Duncan Square Plaza. It's a little park directly across the street from the mayor's office in city hall. What we saw and smelled and heard would disgust most people, especially those who live there. Almost unbelievably, many of these people hold full time jobs, have always held jobs and have never asked for a handout but, because of the severe housing shortage and skyrocketing rent, can no longer afford housing. We watched them returning from work in clean white shirts and neat pants and clean shoes only to hole up inside their tent after dark.
We also stayed with a man who would frighten some people because, a) he is a black man, b) he lives in a small, landlord neglected first floor apartment in the hood and c) he is HIV positive. He isn't just any black man, having run for mayor in 2006. He served as a corrections officer, he's a veteran and he is an activist. But these are not what make him exceptional. It isn't even that he was locked inside a cell in downtown New Orleans during Katrina. There were thousands of other inmates, many who were being held on trivial offenses and, while they were never charged, they were nevertheless left there to drown in the foul, poisonous, sewage and chemically contaminated waters of Katrina by prison guards who left them locked inside flooding cells without so much as a parting insult before the guards headed for home and safety. Most of the inmates here are African Americans. So it is not his ethnicity that makes him stand out. What makes him exceptional is that he had absolutely no business being arrested in the first place.
In instance after instance we have encountered local people who tell us that police violence, discrimination and brutality are rampant here. We have heard allegations of corruption at every level of governance. We have heard that there is cronyism at its ugliest in the administering of no bid contracts to developers who have much to gain in acquiring the property that Mayor Nagin proposes to demolish. So after a week of after sitting with Katrina survivors and listening to their stories about what happened during the storm and the man-made battering they have endured for over 2 years since, we are organizing a roundtable discussion to be held in New Orleans on Tuesday night in an effort to present an open airing of the many interests who are working toward a just disposition of the dispossessed here. First and foremost, of course, is a question that, even if rhetorical, is critical to understanding the Housing Crisis in New Orleans—Who owned the property before Katrina and who will own it after the proposed demolition of 83% of the available low income housing in New Orleans? Beyond this, we have compiled a list of questions we have yet to find satisfying answers to:
Is this ethnic cleansing in the Homeland?
What about the right of return for internally displaced persons? How has this displacement affected the political landscape and how are the two connected?
Why is perfectly good, beautifully designed and structurally sound housing that was unscathed by Katrina being demolished when there are tens of thousands of New Orleanians who would love to come home?
Why have residents been barred from returning by physical obstructions placed at great expense by the city over windows that were unbroken by the storm? Why were barb wire fences installed and doors barred?
Why are there 240 homeless people living in tents across the street from Mayor Nagin's office in City Hall? Where are these same people, who are being fenced out of the park, supposed to go after the Mayor has them removed?
Why aren't all the homeless from the park considered homeless?
Why is prime real estate only blocks from the French Quarter being transferred into private hands with 99 year tax incentives?
If the low housing units in B.W. Cooper and C.J. Peete are demolished, what does the mayor or any of the others who are advocating the demolition have planned for the over 200,000 residents who are still displaced? How will demolishing 83% of available housing and replacing it with only 10% of that capacity help the displaced return?
Are the allegations of cronyism and conflict of interest for HUD Secretary, Alphonzo Jackson justified? Were his warnings of the potential loss of Federal revenues just scare tactics to dampen support for human rights and the coalition?
Were authorizations and procedures for the demolitions properly followed and adhered to? If not, why not?
It is precisely because there are so many more questions than there are answers, and that the answers will have tremendous influence on thousands of people's lives and the future quality of life for all of New Orleans that we are organizing a roundtable discussion on the housing crisis in New Orleans. We hope to help provide a forum that will allow for transparency in addressing the questions and disseminating the conversation widely.
The roundtable is tentatively scheduled for 7:00 PM, Tuesday, December 18th, at a venue in New Orleans to be determined no later than Monday afternoon.
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Stay warm this winter in a black hooded sweatshirt. Order one. Order them by the dozen and donate them to occupations!
Right after Katrina, Mayor Nagin was on the news nationwide saying he discovered there were over 120,000 meals waiting to be delivered to the Superdome from the nearby Air Force base that never got delivered. He said someone has to answer for this. These were the last words of truth uttered in public by the mayor.
And, yes it's ethnic cleansing - the government no longer is hiding it, only the newspapers won't report on this topic.
New Orleans — Imagine a 14-foot sphere that floats, is transportable and serves as a home. Tuftonboro resident Roger Drowne has models in his house, on his Web site and in his head of these so-called Earth Balls, which he hopes will soon take hold of the world and become the next form of affordable housing.
Through the Internet, Drowne, a long-time artist, is the coordinator of a group of Earth Ball believers who have helped develop the concept. Drowne explained it as a sphere, 14 feet in diameter and made of fiberglass. The top half of the sphere could "open up like a flower" if it is nice outside, according to Drowne. Screens can be attached or an insulating blanket could be used to keep out the heat or cold, depending on the season. All the way around the inside of the Earth Ball abode is a counter. Also inside are a foldout bed, a compost toilet, a shower and other living necessities. Below the countertop would be cabinets and storage space.
A DEFLATED CANVAS EARTH BALL sits in Roger Drowne's Tuftonboro house as inspiration for his Earth Ball abode idea. The ball, which is six-feet in diameter when inflated, was made by a man in California. Drowne's Earth Ball abode concept, which he believes is the next form of affordable housing, is a way he hopes to bring all of the Earth's citizens together as one global community. (Photo by Michelle Giguere) (click for larger version)
"They make the [Earth Ball] very, very strong," said Drowne, likening it to a "superstructure."
Underneath the counter would be 16 smaller basic survival balls. Drowne explained that one would be a fire-starter kit with tools like a magnifying glass, a lighter, flint, etc.
"It's a fire-starter kit for if you don't have anything," he said.
The largest of these 16 balls would be a solar power ball, which would open up and have solar panels for energy power.
Another ball would be a water maker so that no matter where a person is, s/he will always have access to fresh water.
On the outside of the Earth Ball there would be four stabilizing legs with flotation devices at the ends to keep the abode upright on the ground and water.
Drowne explained that one of the greatest parts of the Earth Ball idea is its efficiency. The abode uses little energy, is easy to maintain and produces minimal waste.
"These units do not pollute," he said.
They are also better suited as affordable housing for low-income and homeless people, according to Drowne, because stacked homes do not work well. Building up is not the way to go, he said.
Drowne believes Earth Ball abodes could be mass-produced for about $10,000 each in communities all over the world. Even if it costs $50,000 per Earth Ball, the long-term benefits would outweigh the costs, he added. He envisions teenagers getting an Earth Ball when they are about 16 and living in the yard of their parents' home. This way, the family can oversee the teenager's transition to independence. Then, when that child goes off to college or work, s/he can bring the Earth Ball along for housing.
"It would cut your tuition in half," Drowne said. "The reason I'm doing this is for the kids, my granddaughter, my daughter."
How it began
People often ask Drowne how he knows the Earth Ball idea will work. He knows from personal experience, as he spent two years on a boat that he built for about $6,000. He lived on the boat and traveled all the way down to the Caribbean. This was the start of the Earth Ball concept.
Another aspect of his life that inspired the Earth Ball stemmed from his high school days. Drowne grew up summering in Tuftonboro with his family and worked at the Yum Yum Shop in Wolfeboro. He used to drive a motorcycle and hotrod cars with his friends. Drowne, who called himself a "wild child," explained that teenagers would turn the "hotrodders" into homes where they would eat, sleep and practically live. However, being cars, they were also transportable.
"So this is just a progression," he said of the Earth Ball.
More than just a home
Besides the abode, Drowne has formulated a design for an Earth Ball greenhouse, which was an idea from one of his online correspondents. The greenhouse would be the same basic idea structure-wise; however, inside would be designed for growing and producing food.
On the counter that wraps around the inside of the sphere, a person could grow flowers, vegetables and herbs. Underneath the counter where the temperature is lower, other types of food, like mushrooms, could grow.
A greenhouse attachment to an Earth Ball abode would create a self-sustaining environment, according to Drowne.
All over the globe
While some may be skeptical, Drowne, for one, "can't wait" to live in an Earth Ball. It will be like living outside, he said, when the top is down, and the abode will take only 15 minutes to clean. There will be "minimal pollution" to the environment, it will be easy to heat or cool because of the small size and inexpensive to maintain.
Drowne wants communities, like Tuftonboro, to come together and start creating more ideas for the Earth Ball. He would love to see retired engineers, children, the elderly and the working class all combine ideas.
"Let's figure out how to build these for the next generation," said Drowne.
He wants the U.S. government to start mass-producing the Earth Balls and begin "Henry Fording them" to other countries. However, everyone should be able to modify the Earth Ball so it suits different lifestyles.
For other communities around the world, like war-torn countries in Africa, he sees the Earth Ball as a salvation from poverty and homelessness.
Since they can float, Earth Ball abodes would also be an escape from floods. The sphere can be secured to a tree and will rise with the water without floating away. A dock, Drowne explained, will be located at the outside of the door so that a small dinghy with an outboard motor can be attached for transportation.
In fact, Drowne hopes to be going to New Orleans soon to work with officials on the Earth Ball idea. He and his fellow Earth Ball creators are searching for engineers to help bring the concept to fruition.
For Drowne, the main idea of the Earth Ball is to bring everyone together as "one global community" without war, which is "obsolete" now, he emphasized.
"We are all human beings on this Earth," he said.
To Drowne this idea seems so basic, he added, and he hopes others will soon see it too.
"This is real, this is not pie in the sky," he said. "It's time to change the world."
For more information visit the Web sites www.EarthBall.org , www.OneGlobalCommunity.com and www.RogerArt.com .
Michelle Giguere can be reached at 603- 569-3126 or mgiguere@salmonpress.com.
" Roger, calls for an end to all war, a change in governments,
and a unification of all Earth's citizens. "
www.EarthBall.org Home Page
RogerART.com & - EarthBall.org & - OneGlobalCommunity.com & - EarthCitizenNEWS.com & - pResidentOfPlanetEarth.com - ( soon, Step Ahead ( GLOBAL ) University - " Where All Earth Citizens R Teachers and Students" )