Remembering Katrina, Rebuilding New Orleans Posted by Donna Brazile, DNC Vice Chair of Voter Registration and Participation on August 27, 2010 at 05:01 PM

This weekend marks the fifth August since Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast. It is a solemn anniversary, one marked by still empty New Orleans homes and still scattered New Orleans neighbors. Yet it is also a hopeful anniversary, one marked by the tremendous progress made since the levees broke and the water washed so many peoples homes and hopes away.

This year, for the first time since the storm, my own family is back in New Orleans, together and whole. I have spent portions of this summer with them in the City of Jazz, renovating their new homes. As we put the finishing touches on those clean, mold-free houses we looked back on Hurricane Katrina with immense gratitude for our good fortune  though my family lost their belongings and their home, they all survived, thanks to the incredible kindness of strangers.

When the storm made landfall, the government response was painfully slow. There was a breakdown in communications. People – many of whom were too frail or simply without the means to evacuate – were stuck waiting to be rescued. Then, the levees failed.

I will never forget the generosity of people from across the country as they rose to the occasion to help so many people rebuild their lives. Regardless of race or background  people came together and helped one another. Our common humanity rose to the surface. It is that common humanity that I am thinking about today, as the people of New Orleans and the entire Gulf coast continue the process of rebuilding their lives.

So on this anniversary, let us offer our remembrance to those who perished in the storm, our gratitude to those brave individuals who offered their aid to others caught in the storm, and our own kindness and goodwill to all those around us  because as Hurricane Katrina showed us, we are all dependent on one another, and a little human kindness goes a long way.

http://www.democrats.org/a/2010/08/remembering_kat.php