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View From the 9th Ward
My December column about misleading news coverage of Hurricane Katrina-related rumors keeps producing an interesting trickle of e-mails from people who had boots on the ground. Here's one:
My name is Dwayne Felty. I just finished reading your article "They shoot helicopters don't they?" I thought this was a really good article. I am a union electrician from Herrin Illinois. About 1 week after hurricane Katrina several partners and myself traveled to Gulfport Mississippi to help in the reconstruction effort. We spent several weeks in Gulfport when we started getting word that they were needing electricians in New Orleans. But as your article talked about, we were kind of scared to go because of all the unbelievable rumors that were coming out of the city.
We heard stories that there was some kind of research laboratory in the city in which some kind virus had gotten loose and was infecting people, and the medical community was trying to keep it quiet. To another story that I really don't know if was a rumor or not. It involved the private security firm [name omitted]. We were told by several residents that [name omitted] was one of the law enforcement groups responsible for doing evacuation of 9th ward residents who had refused to leave their homes after the storm. We were told that they had been given orders to bring out no wounded, if these residents absolutely refused to leave they were given permission to use whatever force they felt necessary, and that they were drowning people that refused to leave their homes.
Despite these stories we decided to travel to New Orleans anyway. We went to work under contract of the city of New Orleans Sewage and Water Board. Our job was to completely rewire pump station #5 which was directly across the street from the London Ave. Canal levee breach in the lower 9th ward. For the next two months I spent 12-15 hours a day, 7 days a week in that ravaged neighborhood. Besides military and rescue personnel, we were one of the first crews allowed in that neighborhood.
Unlike the rumors that we had been hearing which we had no idea if they were true or not, I witnessed horrors in that neighborhood with my own eyes that I know for fact are not rumors, and this is kinda the reason that I decided to write you, to share with you some of my experiences. [...]
[A]fter witnessing some of the things I saw, I feel like I have a responsibility to tell my story to everyone I can.
The one thing that haunts me the most is that when they finally started door to door search and rescue they would spray paint the front of the building, and it would contain the date of the search, who performed the search, how many were found dead, and how many were found living. As you probably know the flood waters came in on August 29-30. I can't even begin to count how many homes that we saw that were not checked for survivors for the first time until the 24-26 of September. I would just like to know why it took almost a month to check these homes for survivors? There were people who starved to death because they could not escape their attics, and the resources were there to help them. THEY LET PEOPLE DIE!
Up until the day that I left to return home, they were finding bodies on a daily basis. One day in particular they found a family of 10 dead in the attic of their home. On another occasion I ran into a camera crew from NBC. They were being escorted by two New Orleans police officers. As I talked to them I told them that they needed to come down to [the] 9th ward because no one was showing the things that we were seeing on TV. They told me that they had been trying to get into that neighborhood but were not allowed past the military checkpoints. As I talked to these people one of the police officers rudely interrupted me and as he chuckled he asked me "So, how many niggers you seen floating down there? Those people got exactly what they deserved! That place should have been leveled years ago!" I couldn't believe what I had just heard, I just turned around and walked away. [...]
Like I said, I just want to tell my stories -- and I have plenty more -- to as many people that will listen. [...]
Sincerely,
Dwayne Felty
I've done some light copy editing to the letter.
Dave W.|1.5.06 @ 10:23AM|#
"To make it clear to the world how disgusting your attitudes
are.
You are pre-occupied with looting and two injuries to police.
Meanwhile, thousands are dead and this is barely a blip on your
mental radar.
I don't doubt that there are law enforcement problems in NO and
that there may be an actual police or paramedic death at some
point. That is very important to know and to handle optimally for
the people involved locally. The wounding and near-wounding
incidents are as scary as the wounding and ner-wounding incidents
that go on in every American city everyday.
However, for you [readers], sitting there in the comfort of your
offices, well away from the guns and floods, those thousands of
bloated, blue corpses should be categorically blocking your
thoughts of stolen tvs and small handful of wounded
police/guard/medics. Obviously they aren't. What a sick, sad
bunch.
Comment by: Phil Collins at September 1, 2005 11:53 AM"
rollins@appliedinformation.com|1.5.06 @ 10:29AM|#
I was down there in early October to do animal rescue work, and
I was also shocked at the spray painted dates on the houses. I was
surprised to see quite a few dead bodies, though most of the ones
out in the open had been carted away.
The amount of dysfunction was comical. I remember calling 911
because of a live wire that had fallen, only to be told to call the
utility company. Of course they put me in voice menu hell, so I
waited until the wire had started a small fire before calling 911
again.
David Rollins|1.5.06 @ 10:31AM|#
I should add that I wasn't *really* surprised at the dysfunction, since I grew up down there. I was glad I had a gun.
|1.5.06 @ 10:32AM|#
You surpise me, Dave. I would have expected you to post something about how, since no proof of rumored horrors(helicopter shootings, gang rapes, etc.) exists, we can't say they didn't occur. Instead, you choose to quote finger-wagging from your alter-ego about how disgusting our priorities are.
Dave W.|1.5.06 @ 10:35AM|#
What can I say, Phil called it.
Well, if you told me you were drowning; I would not lend a
hand; I�ve seen your face before my friend; But I don�t know if you
know who I am; Well, I was there and I saw what you did; I saw it
with my own two eyes; So you can wipe off the grin, I know where
you�ve been; It�s all been a pack of lies
Dave W.|1.5.06 @ 10:41AM|#
David:
Oh and by te way, Phil did express skepticism that helicopters
were, in fact, being shot at. That didn't go over real big either,
IIRC.
Matt|1.5.06 @ 10:44AM|#
Tough to believe the cop said that to him with an NBC camera crew right there.
|1.5.06 @ 10:50AM|#
Tough to believe the cop said that to him with an NBC camera
crew right there.
Yeah, that sounds a little fishy. Then again, I never underestimate
stupidity. So I'm putting this one in the "maybe" column.
|1.5.06 @ 10:53AM|#
"THEY LET PEOPLE DIE"
but I guess we'll beleive Mister D' Wayne's report...it must be
true...it's on the interweb. And besides my friend whose sister's a
nurse said the whole hamster thing was true too.
Matt Welch|1.5.06 @ 10:58AM|#
I didn't say it was true (I didn't say the Major Burns' shpiel from the Superdome was true, either); but the guy is a real human (best I can tell) who was really down there, and I thought people might like to read his account.
|1.5.06 @ 11:05AM|#
And besides my friend whose sister's a nurse said the whole
hamster thing was true too.
Yeah I think I know that guy's cousin.
In all fairness, though, the guy is pretty clear about
distiguishing between rumours and what he actually saw.
|1.5.06 @ 11:07AM|#
In all fairness, though, the guy is pretty clear about
distiguishing between rumours and what he actually saw.
That is fair.
I knew a guy in college who swore up and down that his friend's
mother paid $200 for a cookie recipe.
|1.5.06 @ 11:15AM|#
Actually, the stories of abuse by the police and
deprivation/slow response that came out in that terrible week have
held up pretty well. People really did die of thirst in the
Convention Center. The Sherriff's deptartment in an abutting county
really did block an escape route, and fire into the air to stop New
Orleanians from fleeing.
It's the stories of gangrapes, mass murder, and attacks on resucers
that have been mugged by reality.
|1.5.06 @ 11:24AM|#
As I have said before in a post here about the rumors.
While sitting in the dark listening to the radio and hurricane
Katrina howling outside I recall the very first rumor I heard.
Several people had called from different areas and said the levees
had been breached. For what I would imagine was a good 4 hours
public officials denied that any levees had broken and everything
was fine. So glad it was just a rumor. From there you try to figure
out what is rumor and what is the truth when you listen to the
officials that blow smoke up your ass every other day of the year.
Add to that the unfortunate fact that even if untrue rumors were
spread the history of the area would not make it that hard or far
fetched for all those familiar with the place to think it very well
could be true. If the people the supposed rumors were started about
didn't normally do most of the things they normally would do day in
and day out I do not think the rumors would have had such a far
reach.
You must also understand that at a time of disaster people go into
a self preservation mode. The difference being that one part of
society pulls together to get through the tough times and the other
has never had to concern itself with self preservation because
someone else has taken care of that for them all their lives.
Knowing this as a fact its not that hard to see why such rumors
could be so easily spread. If this had happened to Amish country
and the same rumors were spread I don't think many would believe
it. But when you leave yourself open for such claims by your
everyday normal actions you have to expect others to believe it
before not. Add to this the situation of a disaster and people will
be even more inclined to believe the hysteria that spreads.
Another note that I think others from the fairer skinned states
fail to realize is that the police and politicians here claimed
everything was a rumor because they were afraid of some sort of
race war. I am not quite sure I guess they figured white people
would just start shooting blacks on sight or some other stupid
shit. When all the white people were worried about was staying
alive and trying to maintain their belongings. No one was going to
just start shooting regardless of your skin color. If you were
stealing someones things or threatening someone you would be likely
to get shot no matter what color you are. All the rumors were not
just rumors unless you still think the levees are just fine too
;)
I was born in New Orleans and love the city but don't for a second
think that prevented me from taking my gun with me when I would go
visit over the years. Even the black people I know were packing
their guns and for only one reason. They knew what they were
hearing could just as well be true as not when you look only at the
facts of the past. So please someone call Jessie and Al and let
them know blacks were scared of the rumors too. Lets see them play
the race card with that fact!
|1.5.06 @ 11:43AM|#
My understanding (from over 1000 miles away) is that folks in
Louisiana and Mississippi aren't bashful at all about using the
n-word when the cameras aren't rolling, no matter who is
listening.
Is there someone from Louisiana who can shed some first-hand light
on the plausability of this scenario?
|1.5.06 @ 12:06PM|#
I recall the very first rumor I heard. Several people had
called from different areas and said the levees had been breached.
For what I would imagine was a good 4 hours public officials denied
that any levees had broken and everything was fine.
This is a good point. Remember the fable of the boy who cried wolf?
After making many false claims that wolves were attacking his flock
of sheep, the other shepherds refused to believe the boy when he
finally was telling the truth. But does the blame lie with
the shepherds, or with the boy? I'd say the latter.
pigwiggle|1.5.06 @ 12:08PM|#
�There were people who starved to death because they could not
escape their attics,�
This tore it; either he�s full of shit or isn�t too bright. Anyone
interested can go to the Louisiana Department of Health and
Hospital�s website and look at how many folks died, where, and from
what (as they are identified by family), their ethnicity, and so
forth. It�s reasonably interesting; for example, white folks died
at a greater rate, that is in relation to their representation in
the NO population. Overwhelmingly the dead drowned; I couldn�t find
a single starvation death.
Anyway, I would be very surprised if a single person starved in NO
after the levee breach. It takes several weeks for a person with a
healthy weight to die of starvation. An overweight or obese person
may only be at their BMI after a month without food; and that�s
with regular daily movement.
I think it more likely what he saw was part of the protracted body
recovery, not folks checking for survivors.
|1.5.06 @ 12:15PM|#
I don't think anybody had time to starve to death, but dying of thirst sounds plausible.
|1.5.06 @ 12:21PM|#
All I can think about the "surprise" about the cop "possibly"
saying something like that without shame, is, A. You don't know
many cops. B. You've been in Europe for the past 200 years. C. You
don't read the papers.
Here in Chicago, cops used to get upset when the newspapers would
listen in on the police band and then report things like that (my
fav was years ago when Mike Royko reported on the police term
"mexercise" meaning to go and beat some "mexicans", and that was
the mildest, I believe it was only a year ago that someone was
broadcasting interesting racial comments across the fire and police
bands-I don't think they ever caught who did it, but they were
going to the expense of self identifying radios to prevent it
because it continued happening even after it made the front pages
here in Chi)
That Paranoid Guy|1.5.06 @ 12:22PM|#
If the report says that someone died of drowning, can we trust that? You can see why officials might have reason to lie about cause of death if they think they can get away with that lie. Could they get away with that kind of lie?
|1.5.06 @ 12:27PM|#
Rimfax- I am in Louisiana and people do use the N word I will
not pretend racism is dead and gone because its not (same goes for
reverse racism discrimination) but to be honest I hear the N word
100 times more when around blacks coming from blacks than I ever do
in an all white setting. Most of us all have to live together and
came to grips with the color thing a long time ago. I am not racist
but I am predudice. I can't stand stupid people who have their hand
out no matter what color their skin happens to be.
It is true that by populace more whites died than blacks in New
Orleans. But lets not allow the facts to cloud the race baiting. I
have lived in 2 major cities where I was the minority yet still
considered the majority at the same time. Talk about identity
issues lol. How a city that is majority black and run by black pols
for over 20 years can still say its whities fault and have anyone
even listen is beyond me.
|1.5.06 @ 12:29PM|#
My understanding (from over 1000 miles away) is that folks in
Louisiana and Mississippi aren't bashful at all about using the
n-word when the cameras aren't rolling, no matter who is
listening.
Is there someone from Louisiana who can shed some first-hand light
on the plausability of this scenario?
Comment by: Rimfax at January 5, 2006 11:43 AM
In most cases, I would say no. But at that time when racial strife
was very high, and the people involved were the NOPD, it wouldn't
suprise me in the least.
If you want to find a place where people would say something like
that, Kenner would be a good start (they did hold the campaign HQ
for the David Duke governor run), and maybe several other
cracker-fied towns. In my home town, Baton Rouge, it was pretty
common knowledge that the KKK still had active support in many of
the suburbs of Baton Rouge. I even had a classmate at my high
school, Catholic High, whose family was widely known to be in the
Klan in Walker!
I'd say Louisiana is getting better from the low point of the Race
from Hell of Duke vs. Edwin "Crook" Edwards, where our last
govenor's election had a woman Democrat, Mary Blanco, facing a
dark, Indian Republican, Bobby Jindal!
Of course, Jindal lost supposedly because all the crackers wised up
to him being darker than many black people and just didn't
vote...
As for the end-result of Katrina and racial strife...?
David Rollins|1.5.06 @ 12:41PM|#
mad props to BR from someone who couldn't get into Catholic High
because he was an episcopalian (instead I went to BRHS with Bobby
Jindal).
The N-word is heard commonly in Baton Rouge, by folks of all racial
composition. It's something I warn visitors about.
|1.5.06 @ 12:54PM|#
You think it's annoying to walk down the street behind two black
people and hear the call each other, and the people around them,
"niggas" every third word?
Try listening to two Cambodians do it. Now that's just messed
up.
But still, let's not pretend not to understand the difference
between knucklehead teenages using it as a term of affection, and
white people using it as their preferred term for "African
American."
Not the same thing at all.
|1.5.06 @ 1:33PM|#
What exactly does it say about someone who on one hand uses the
term as you say affectionetly yet at the same time shows mortal
contempt if they hear if come from anyone other than their own
color. Are you implying that white people are unable to show
affection using the same word as a black person I sure hope not
because that would be racist. Just like Frank A above calling
everyone crackers and calling cities crackerfied. Do black people
actually think that calling white people something is going to
endear them to you when at the same time if you say nigga it means
your in the klan, unless your black than its just all peace and
love. WTF WTF WTF I guess I shouldn't be surprised by this train of
logic considering the music that is so prevailant these days which
is pretty much a endless loop of niggas, bitches and ho's mixed in
with some UH HUH UH HUH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH know what i'm sayin,
know what i'm sayin. Actually no you fucking moron I don't know
what your saying because if you took out the words "know what i'm
saying," from what you said all thats left if the YEAH YEAH and the
bitches and ho's.
Ever see one of these geniuses on TV being interviewed. Rapper or
Jock usually going on and on non-stop but not saying a damn thing
of any relavance to anything, but ya know what he is sayin? Don't
ya? How in the hell can anyone know what ya sayin when you yourself
use the same word to mean completely different things. Seems to me
that you don't even know what ya sayin. So please for all of us 2nd
hand rap sufferers of the world shut up already until you figure
out exactly what it is your saying and can do it without asking me
every other word if i know what your sayin..
Know what I'm sayin?
As for racist I guess the Million More march was all just a bunch
of color blind do gooders who only want to bring peace and harmony
to the world right? I listened for as long as I could stomach it
and without question had any white person said even a shread of
what was said by supposed black leaders on that day there would
have been outrage and cries of racism. If these are the best people
the black community can come up with to champion their causes and
advance themselves they are gonna be shit outta luck for a long
time as far as the majority of whites in this country are
concerned. The more I see Sharpton, Jessie and Farahkan on TV
standing there with black politicians spouting this shit the easier
it is to see why the black community feels its being kept down. To
bad they are blind to the fact its their own people doing the
keeping down this time around. Really how is someone supposed to
respect a black politician when they are high fiving the 3 race
baiters above and seemingly in agreement with everything they have
to say. Sure the black people might approve after all they are
letting these idiots lead them to begin with. However, the white
people see this and then listen to what the black pol says after.
All the while remembering what they just heard them agree with Al
and Jessie about. So when they have to appeal to everyone not just
blacks the whites remember the close connection and have to wonder
if this guy really believes those people.
|1.5.06 @ 1:58PM|#
"What exactly does it say about someone who on one hand uses the
term as you say affectionetly yet at the same time shows mortal
contempt if they hear if come from anyone other than their own
color."
That words gain their meaning through context?
In my experience, white people who get upset about being
discouraged from referring to black people as niggers aren't
usually approaching the issue from a theoretical perspective.
Know what I mean?
|1.5.06 @ 2:06PM|#
Chris Rock once did a very funny routine about white people who
think their lives would be complete if only they, like black
people, could call black folks "nigger" with impunity.
So they get to say it and we don't. Big deal. Overall, I'd still
say white people in America have it better than black people. (I've
never been pulled over for Driving While White.)
Thomas Paine's Goiter|1.5.06 @ 2:30PM|#
(I've never been pulled over for Driving While
White.)
I was often pulled over for driving while young and white.
|1.5.06 @ 2:56PM|#
TPG--
Driving While Teenaged is different from Driving While
Black--eventually you outgrow the former.
pigwiggle|1.5.06 @ 3:01PM|#
It seems more than reasonable not to call folks names they don�t
want to be called. What burns me though is all this moronic n-word
bull shit. Why can�t a bunch of reasonable folks sit down and
discuss racism and racial epithets without resorting to some
juvenile code. I work in a very multiethnic multinational lab and
often lunch discussion turns to politics and race. It�s the n-word
all around, even the black folks. Why can�t a few decidedly
non-racist folks sit down and have an intelligent conversation,
nigger and all. It�s beyond me.
Of all the horror suffered on past generations of black folks you
might think we would be more sensitive about words like slavery,
lynching, segregation; you know, the L-word and the S-words.
|1.5.06 @ 3:03PM|#
I could care less if the blacks want to call each other that
just please stop bitching about the word not going away in its
other "context." If blacks persist to use it themselves as if it
was the chorus to a song in every sentence spoken the negative
context will never leave. Don't keep sewing what you don't want to
keep reaping. Hell even Farahkan knew not to call it the Million
Nigga March..
Anyone here ever here of a group called the Black Poets from the
70's? They had a african style but mixed it with beatnik peotry
style. They had several songs where they called black people
nigga's talking about their races problems. Very good music if you
can find it somewhere check out the songs Wake Up Nigga and Nigga's
Are Scared of Revolution. If they played it today you would think
they were talking about 2006.
slightlybad|1.5.06 @ 3:20PM|#
I actually have been pulled over for "Driving While White". Try rolling around around the 'hood at 2 a.m. and I can bet you will be too. The cops assume that you're there buying drugs.
|1.5.06 @ 4:09PM|#
I actually have been pulled over for "Driving While White".
Try rolling around around the 'hood at 2 a.m. and I can bet you
will be too. The cops assume that you're there buying
drugs.
Point taken. On the other hand, whites gets pulled over when they
drive in a slum; blacks get pulled over when they drive
outside a slum. So I still think they're getting the short
end of the stick.
|1.5.06 @ 4:16PM|#
Slightybad- In most police states you are always assumed to be
guilty of something.
If your white in a black hood your buying drugs. If your black in a
white hood your casing houses and stealing cars.
In places like New Orleans with nearly 70% black it is impossible
to not be driving in the hood every few blocks. There is no real
right and wrong side of the tracks as people usually say, its all
over the place. For those who have never been to New Orleans you
can drive from expensive uptown homes to the projects in less than
60 seconds in one spot of town and from old city middle class hoods
to other projects all over the city.
Thats why I hate it when people in states that have less blacks in
total statewide than New Orleans has in one block of projects
starts jaw jacking about what we need to do. They know how to fix
all the racial problems between whites and blacks. After all they
have experience in dealing with the 1.3% of the population thats
black where they live and everything is fine.
I saw the faces of the people in other cities when they flew all
the evacuees out. They had this OMG they are all black look as they
came off the plane. I think the black populations of some cities
went up thousands of percent or more in hours over those few
days.
Whats really funny is most of the true white society yuks that
claim to know whats needed for racial harmony would shit bricks if
they woke up and suddenly the black population in their city went
from 14 to 14,000.
How many of you think that as soon at they started planning to ship
all those people out someone was calculating the best places to put
them based only on their habitual tendency to vote for one party
over another? I can just imagine in the cities they were sent the
libs had voter registration cards waiting along with all the other
paperwork. Preset plans prior to their arrival of the best district
opps I mean area for them to reside now. All those political
districts with only a few votes keeping them from swinging to the
dems will be getting some new residents.
|1.5.06 @ 5:28PM|#
How many of you think that as soon at they started planning
to ship all those people out someone was calculating the best
places to put them based only on their habitual tendency to vote
for one party over another? I can just imagine in the cities they
were sent the libs had voter registration cards waiting along with
all the other paperwork. Preset plans prior to their arrival of the
best district opps I mean area for them to reside now. All those
political districts with only a few votes keeping them from
swinging to the dems will be getting some new residents.
What?
|1.5.06 @ 8:52PM|#
Just an amusing FYI bit of news. Today in Santa Ana (Orange
county, CA, near LA) two Hurricane Katrina refugees from NO were
arrested for dealing drugs. They were living in the Comfort Inn on
FEMA's dime. It was a radio news account, hence I don't know the
race of either of the accused. I normally don't concern myself with
race, but on this thread it seems "important". Maybe I should have
said two people were "arrested for dealing drugs while
black."
It is also quite amusing to see some of you regular posters
apologetically say something like, "this is from 1000 miles
away"... And yet the same ones will pitch a hissy fit when I point
out that you are two thousand miles away from the front line in the
illegal alien invasion; that strikes me as pretty comical.
|1.5.06 @ 8:58PM|#
I would also like to generally commend you guys on H&R, both
posters and Reasonoids. I signed up for an account on the
Democratic Undergroung web site because I thought it might be
interesting to swap opinions with a bunch of liberals.
Two points about DU:
1. The posters are fucking dumb. Much dumber than any of the
nitwits here :-).
2. They are rude SOBs, and narrow-minded too. They don't want to
have a debate (or an argument), they just want to all prattle on
with one post much like every other.
|1.6.06 @ 4:31AM|#
""Point taken. On the other hand, whites gets pulled over when
they drive in a slum; blacks get pulled over when they drive
outside a slum. So I still think they're getting the short end of
the stick.""
Thatz almost right. Except that Blacks get pulled over in the hood
too. Me I'm a 40 year old white guy with long hair, a nice shirt,
and a decent if non-descript car. I don't get pulled over no
where.
The problem for the party in power is that NO is kinda like that
stain on the carpet that won't come out. The one the dog made when
it was bad.
It's not that the people who died could have been saved, or that
things could have been handled better. It's that they've been
exposed as incompetent and untrustworthy.
|1.6.06 @ 6:45AM|#
It is cracking me up that the New Orleans 9th Ward is now so well-known. I was born and raised in the 9th Ward. Not the section you see on tv, but rather New Orleans East, specifically way out on US 90, past the levee protection system, which received more destruction than any other part of the city. A number of houses, including my parents' house, which my father built by himself in 1975 and I grew up in, weren't even left standing. My folks are now staying in a travel trailer, and last night my mom told me that they just got power there yesterday.
eb|1.8.06 @ 2:34PM|#
I don't buy this story at all. As somebody already pointed out,
death by starvation is not something that happens in a few days.
And I don't buy the cop story either. There's no way such a comment
wouldn't have hit the news immediately whether the camera was
rolling or not.
My understanding (from over 1000 miles away) is that folks in
Louisiana and Mississippi aren't bashful at all about using the
n-word when the cameras aren't rolling, no matter who is
listening.
While I am posting from several thousands of miles away, I'm
originally from this region, a small town in Mississippi just
across the state line, and while "nigger" is used by some people,
and I cringe when I hear it, especially from a friend, people do
understand how offensive it is to most people and so I find it hard
to believe a white NO cop would so carelessly use it so loosely
around people he doesn't know. In fact, I would be more prone to
believe it if the writer said the cop was black. I wonder if this
isn't a story that the writer heard from a friend, who heard it
from a friend, and he's simply making it first person to sound more
convincing.
I will say this, as much as I cringe when a friend or family member
uses "nigger" when I am visiting, they are probably living in a
much more integrated workplace and community than most people from
the north or large cities who pontificate at length about racial
issues. And they have a much more honest and genuine relationship
with their black co-workers and friends as well. They argue, they
cuss each other, they drink beer together and they spend time
together.
After living 15 years in LA I realize how ridiculous some people
can be about racial issues when they never venture east of the 405
and the only mexicans they have a relationship with happens to be
the woman cleaning their toilets and the guys cutting their
grass.
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