Watching the BBC Ten O'clock news and twice (in Matt Frei's report and Fiona Bruce's questions to Laura Trevelyan) it was noted that most of the victims were black.
It would be fine to make the point, if this was impotant to know but it was of no relevance to either and also, if most of the victims were white, I very much doubt this would have been pointed out. This is not radio, the pictures speak for themselves.
Yeah I don't understand why they said "Most of the victims were black". What difference does it make? Are we supposed to feel more sorry for black people or something? White and black people have died - in other words people have died.
The point is that many of the white occupants of New Orleans fled before the hurricane. It's the poorest residents who don't have cars who weren't able to leave the city.
'The World' on BBC Four covered the racial dimension to this story very powerfully, with Charles Wheeler (who covered the Los Angeles riots 40 years ago) in the studio to discuss it.
1. Would America have waited 5 days to get its act together if the majority of the victims had been white and middle class?
2. The residents too poor to evacuate themselves (no cars or money to fly out) were more likely to be black.
I don't think the reporters were implying that black people were more needy than white, or more deserving of pity, just that they seemed to be disproportionate amongst the victims... You can chose to read into this what you will - many will see it that race relations are still less than perfect in the US.
Yes, It's turned into somewhat of a mirror to the reality of American society... despite being the worlds richest country (a phrase which I've heard on virtually every news channel today), the diffrence between rich and poor and black and white is more stark than most other 1st world countries.
Pre-Katrina, New Orleans' population was about 60% black, but if you look at those left behind after the 'mandatory' evacuation, you'd be hard pressed to find a white person. The myth of America being the home of the 'American Dream' where everybody is treated equal and has the same opportunities is on display for all to see.. you have all of the US's problems encapsulated in one event... that is a big story
This is exactly what Jesse Jackson has been saying.
Quote:
"Many black people feel that their race, their property conditions and their voting patterns have been a factor in the response...
I'm not saying that myself, but what's self-evident is that you have many poor people without a way out."
Some rapper (Kayne West) slagged off Bush at a televised benefit concert for not doing enough as he doesn't care about black people.
He also added that broadcasters were describing footage of black people breaking into stores as "looting", but referring to white people as "looking for food".
NBC cut away from Kayne West to comedian Chris Tucker
Though the comments went out live on the East-coast, they were cut out of the delayed broadcast on the West coast.
Some rapper (Kayne West) slagged off Bush at a televised benefit concert for not doing enough as he doesn't care about black people.
He also added that broadcasters were describing footage of black people breaking into stores as "looting", but referring to white people as "looking for food".
NBC cut away from Kayne West to comedian Chris Tucker
Though the comments went out live on the East-coast, they were cut out of the delayed broadcast on the West coast.
He also added that broadcasters were describing footage of black people breaking into stores as "looting", but referring to white people as "looking for food".
Some rapper (Kayne West) slagged off Bush at a televised benefit concert for not doing enough as he doesn't care about black people.
He also added that broadcasters were describing footage of black people breaking into stores as "looting", but referring to white people as "looking for food".
NBC cut away from Kayne West to comedian Chris Tucker
Though the comments went out live on the East-coast, they were cut out of the delayed broadcast on the West coast.
Oh for goodness sake. I very much doubt they intended to be "racist". The point is not what words are used, as anybody with common sense will know that people "looting" and people "finding food in grocery stores" are the same thing. The issue is that some people believe that the President is not doing as much as he could because black citizens are stranded, another fact I find pathetic. The President was elected for a reason; he would have taken exactly the same actions should the population in question have been majorly white. This is just people taking the view that "because 60% of the stranded are black, and not enough is being done, he
must
be racist". Let us not forget that Mr. Bush has just pumped government aid into the project, as well as returning early from vacation and entering the affected areas.
Some rapper (Kayne West) slagged off Bush at a televised benefit concert for not doing enough as he doesn't care about black people.
He also added that broadcasters were describing footage of black people breaking into stores as "looting", but referring to white people as "looking for food".
NBC cut away from Kayne West to comedian Chris Tucker
Though the comments went out live on the East-coast, they were cut out of the delayed broadcast on the West coast.
Oh for goodness sake. I very much doubt they intended to be "racist". The point is not what words are used, as anybody with common sense will know that people "looting" and people "finding food in grocery stores" are the same thing. The issue is that some people believe that the President is not doing as much as he could because black citizens are stranded, another fact I find pathetic. The President was elected for a reason; he would have taken exactly the same actions should the population in question have been majorly white. This is just people taking the view that "because 60% of the stranded are black, and not enough is being done, he
must
be racist". Let us not forget that Mr. Bush has just pumped government aid into the project, as well as returning early from vacation and entering the affected areas.
Off course they didn't intend to be racist. That's the whole point. It happens automatically. It's what is meant by institutionalized racism. It's why picture editors seeing a black person taking food from a shop call it looting and seeing a white person call it finding.
The difference in the two captions to those pictures I actually find one of the most shocking things about the whole event.