Displaced Public Housing Residents Protest Tomorrow at Mayor’s House

EMBARGOED UNTIL 11:00AM, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2006
PHOTO OPPOTUNITY - December 16, 2006

Media contact: Endesha Juakali / survivorsvillage@gmail.com / 504.239.2907 or 504.284.6975

Displaced Public Housing Residents Protest at Mayor’s House

New Orleans, LA (December 16, 2006) -Displaced residents and supporters will rally outside Mayor Ray Nagin’s house on Saturday to demand the re-opening of New Orleans public housing. At 10:00am protesters will gather at Bynum Drugs Store, 3838 St. Bernard Ave, and from there will march to Nagin’s home.

“We are going to his home because so many people still aren’t being allowed to come home,” says rally organizer Endesha Juakali of Survivors Village. “We will not let rich developers profit from Katrina at the expense of displaced residents. This is corporate welfare in its lowest form, and the Mayor’s fingerprints are all over it.”

Despite overwhelming support for the re-opening of public housing, Mayor Nagin has consistently ignored public opinion and advocated for its demolition. With this in mind, displaced residents of the Lafitte, CJ Peete, BW Cooper and St. Bernard public housing complexes in New Orleans will demand that Nagin halt the demolition of more than 5,100 units of public housing, and that the units instead be repaired and re-opened. They will be joined by supporters from organizations that include Survivors Village, the People’s Hurricane Relief Fund, Common Ground Relief, SEIU, United for Affordable Housing and C3 Hands Off Iberville. The protest will also attempt to contextualize the fight for public housing within the need for fully funded public services, including public education, public health systems, and public transportation.

The controversial proposed demolitions have been contested on many fronts. At the recent Resident Advisory Board meeting, HANO received a resounding and unquestionable "NO!" to their plans. Angry residents accused HANO of "ethnic cleansing," and told them "being poor is not a crime."

A recent motion for summary judgment filed by the Loyola Law Clinic argues that the demolition and redevelopment of public housing “will end up costing over $175 million more than extensively modernizing the developments, and upwards of $450 million more than simply repairing them would cost.” These facts are not disputed by HANO. The motion also argues that the demolitions have racial implications. “Prior to Katrina over 5,100 African-American families lived in New Orleans’ public housing. Nearly 14 months later, only approximately 1,000 have been allowed to return. HANO’s actions clearly have disproportionately harmed African-Americans and have lead to the overall decline in the city’s African American population since Katrina.”