Assignment: Due Date: 12/23/08
1. Carefully read the questions below. Then, based on your viewing of "When the Levees Broke," use the questions to construct an essay of at least one page in length.
2. Please type, or neatly hand-write your essay. Turn it in tomorrow, first thing when you enter the classroom.
Background Info:
Hurricane Katrina caused America to take pause and challenged our government's values.
What does it mean to be a citizen?
What type of citizen are you?
What is the role of government?
Should the federal government help the less fortunate or provide a safe atmosphere to allow people to become fortunate?
Obviously there were some mistakes made by the federal government.
Have we learned from the mistakes?
In the aftermath of Katrina were decisions made based on race? class? Or need?
Now that we have all seen the Spike Lee documentary what is our responsibility?
CLICK HERE. See what last year's classes in our school, and Queens High School of Teaching had to say. Do you agree, disagree?
2 comments:
Mr T! My printer isn't working so i'm posting my homework to the blog.
WHEN THE LEVEES BROKE
By: Maggie Todaro
Hurricane Katrina caused America to take pause and challenged our government's values. To be a citizen, it means that you’re granted all human rights under the Constitution, including protection from the federal and state governments. The role of government, whether state or federal, is to protect the people. During Hurricane Katrina, the people were in need of serious help, and none were receiving it. The people that had the means and money to get their way out of New Orleans, but what about the people that didn’t leave. I mean, you can’t evacuate every time there’s a hurricane approaching. You wouldn’t have the money to leave and places to go. Little did everyone know that this was the worst storm EVER. So, for the unfortunate mostly African-American population who were poor in New Orleans, suffered. There is no one person that you can blame for the
mishaps of thousands of people, but a whole chain of people.
We did learn from the mistake, because after Katrina, people started being more aware of situations, and were receiving information faster. This natural disaster showed us that in order to overcome a crisis, we as Americans have to come together to help our fellow people. In cases such as the Twin Towers falling, the incident was confined to the small area of New York City. It was nothing that could cause catastrophe for the whole city. But, in New Orleans 80% of their whole city was underwater, and that’s the point where people have to start stepping in and really saying “what can we do to help this poor city when these people need us the most.”
You can say that some of the decisions were based on race and class. 67% of the people living in New Orleans were of African American descent. 27% of the people were under the poverty line. This tells us that most of the people that were going to suffer were 1) black, and 2) poor. Some say that the levees were broken intentionally in order to save the significantly ‘richer’ areas of New Orleans, leaving the poorer regions under water. If this was the case of a class based decision, the hurricane was a good way to cover it up. Now that I’ve seen Spike Lee’s documentary, I think that despite race or class this was a time where people shouldn’t have been seen as white black rich or poor, but as Americans who needed the help of other Americans and the federal Government in order to live and survive.
Hey. Me too. My printer doesn't really work, so, I'm going to post it here. Here I go !
In 2005, a terrible hurricane struck and hit New Orleans. The worst part was that this hurricane broke the main leeves that kept the Altantic Ocean away from New Orleans which the land is 8 feet under water. After the hurricane struck, 80% of New Orleans was underwater, caused severe damage to property and many New Orleans died because of this hurricane.
To be a citizen of America, you must obey the laws stated on the constitution. Also, if you are a citizen, you take part of your country and have responsbilities and have a role to play. To have citizenship, you also should help other citizens like you whenever they are in need, or at least, try to help.
The government said also obey the constitution and always try to do what's best for the people in the country and try to protect the people in the country. In the time of the Hurricane Katrina, about 50,000 were trapped among polluted water even though, they warned about the hurricane earlier. Many people in New Orleans wasn't able to affordable to leave. They weren't finanically covered. That's were the federal government kick in and help them before the hurricane even struck.
First of all, if the leeves that were built to protect the people in New Orleans from the Altantic ocean was stronger AS THEY PROMISED, the results they not be so deadly and horrifying as it is. Secondly, the Federal should have immediametly send troops, boats, buses, and food and not 5 fives after.
If they learned from their mistakes is still unknown to me. If a hurricane were to happen now, maybe, the federal goverment would work faster and be more helpful. Katrina's decisions might included some racial and finaical. Most of the people that were below the poverty level consist of many African Americans and most of them couldn't get the money to leave New Orleans.
In conclusion, the Hurricane Katrina went wrong in many different ways. No one was really helping the ones in need and the Federal Government lost touch on what's happening in reality. After watching the documentary film "When The Leeves Broke", Spike Lee (the creator) spoke the truth and what really happened. Our responsibility is to learn from this and remember this. Whenever the NEXT big natural disaster comes, to be prepared in advanced or see if the Federal Government has ever changed over the years.
-Michelle X
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