Data from Floodlines: Community and Resistance from Katrina to the Jena Six

Floodlines: Community and Resistance from Katrina to the Jena Six contains extensive information about the post-Katrina social movements that blossomed in the cracks, some indigenous and some that descended upon crisis-striken city as an opportunity to spread their ideology. Below is data from Jordan Flaherty’s accounting.

APPENDIX I

Organizations in the Struggle for Post-Katrina Justice

Below are some of the initiatives that inspired this book. More in- formation about most of these groups and their work is available elsewhere in these pages. This list is limited to organizations currently in existence at the time of publication, and is not meant to be definitive. Websites or addresses are listed when applicable.

NEW ORLEANS AND LOUISIANA SOCIAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS

Advocates for Environmental Human Rights

Works for the cause of environmental justice as a human right. www.ehumanrights.org

A Fighting Chance/NOLA Investigates

Investigations for the defense in capital cases. www.nolainvestigates.com

African American Leadership Project

Agenda building, policy analysis, strategic dialogue, and consensus building. www.aalp.org

Agenda for Children

Policy work for children’s rights. www.agendaforchildren.org

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Louisiana

Legal struggles for civil rights. www.laaclu.org

American Friends Service Committee of New Orleans

Organizing against the cradle-to-prison pipeline and other campaigns. www.afsc.org/office/new-orleans-la

Black Men United for Change, Justice and Equality

Grassroots organizing among Black men from New Orleans.

Children’s Defense Fund of Louisiana

National child advocacy organization—in New Orleans, conducts Freedom Schools, among other projects. www.childrensdefense.org

Common Ground Relief Collective

Short-term relief and long-term rebuilding support. www.commongroundrelief.org

267

268 FLOODLINES

Common Ground Health Clinic

Dedicated to providing free, quality health care for New Orleans. www.commongroundclinic.org

Critical Resistance New Orleans

Prison abolition organization. www.criticalresistance.org

Deep South Center for Environmental Justice

Environmental justice organization based at Dillard University. www.dscej.org.

European Dissent

White antiracist group in New Orleans, affiliated with the People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond (PISAB).

Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children (FFLIC)

Organizes among family members of incarcerated youth. www.fflic.org

Finding our Folk

Raising the voices of displaced New Orleanians. www.findingourfolk.org

Fyre Youth Squad

Young people organizing for better schools. www.myspace.com/1fyreyouth

Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center

Legal struggles against housing injustice. www.gnofairhousing.org

Innocence Project New Orleans

Represents innocent prisoners serving life sentences in Louisiana and Mississippi. www.ip-no.org

Institute for Women and Ethnic Studies

Sexual and reproductive health justice among youth, women, and people of color. www.iwesnola.org

International Coalition to Free the Angola 3

A collective working to free Herman Wallace and Albert Woodfox, the two members of the Angola Three who remain in prison. www.angola3.org

Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana

Legal and organizing work to reform juvenile justice. www.jjpl.org

Louisiana Justice Institute

Legal advocacy for civil rights and facilitation of a wide range of social justice campaigns in New Orleans and across the state. www.louisianajusticeinstitute.org

Loyola Law Clinic

Legal clinic representing indigent clients. www.law.loyno.edu/clinic

Make It Right

Founded by Brad Pitt to rebuild housing in the Lower Ninth Ward. www.makeitrightnola.org

APPENDIX I: SOCIAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS 269

Mayday New Orleans

Organizing for public housing justice. www.maydaynolahousing.org

National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N’COBRA)

New Orleans chapter of national alliance working for reparations. www.ncobra.org

Nation of Islam—New Orleans

Rebuilding and antiviolence work in the city. www.noineworleans.org

Neighborhoods Partnership Network (NPN)

Network of neighborhood organizations in New Orleans. www.npnnola.com

New Orleans Food & Farm Network

Food access organization. www.noffn.org

New Orleans, Louisiana Palestine Solidarity (NOLAPS)

Organizing and activism for awareness of Palestine, linking struggles in New Orleans with the Middle East. http://nolaps.blogspot.com

New Orleans Tenants Rights Union

Organizing tenants to create concrete improvements in their situation as renters. http://nolatru.org

New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice

Building worker power, advancing racial justice, and organizing to build a social movement in post-Katrina New Orleans. www.nowcrj.org

NO/AIDS Task Force

Services and advocacy for HIV-infected individuals. www.noaidstaskforce.org

Parents Organizing Network

Supports parents in taking a powerful role in the creation of excellent public schools. www.nolaparentsguide.org

People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond (PISAB)

Antiracist community organizers and educators dedicated to building an effective movement for social transformation. www.pisab.org

Resurrection After Exoneration

Works to reconnect exonerees to their communities and provide access to those opportunities of which they were robbed. www.r-a-e.org

ReThink: Kids Rethink New Orleans Schools

Students reforming the school system post-Katrina. www.therethinkers.com

Safe Streets/Strong Communities

Campaigns for a new criminal justice system in New Orleans. www.safestreetsnola.org

School at Blair Grocery

Dedicated to the growth and development of young minds in the Lower Ninth Ward of New

270 FLOODLINES

Orleans. http://schoolatblairgrocery.blogspot.com

Stay Local! New Orleans

Supports local businesses. www.staylocal.org

Students at the Center

A writing and digital-media program for students in New Orleans public, non-charter high schools. www.sacnola.com

Survivors Village

Former public housing residents in New Orleans struggling for housing justice. www.communitiesrising.wordpress.com

Twomey Center for Peace Through Justice

Education for social justice consciousness. www.loyno.edu/twomey

UNITY of Greater New Orleans

A collaborative of sixty agencies working with homeless people in New Orleans. www.unitygno.org

Vietnamese American Young Leaders Association of New Orleans
( VAY L A )
Empowering Vietnamese American youth through services, cultural enrichment, and social change. www.vayla-no.org

VOTE: Voices of Formerly Incarcerated Persons

Building the political power of people most impacted by the criminal justice system. www.vote-nola.org

Women’s Health & Justice Initiative (WHJI)

A radical feminist of color, anti-violence, justice-based organization. The New Orleans affiliate of INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence. www.whji.org

Women With A Vision

Health care justice for women from at-risk and socially vulnerable communities. www.wwav-no.org

ARTS, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND SPACES

2-Cent Entertainment

Grassroots youth filmmaking collective. www.2-cent.com

Artspot Productions

Theatre and arts organization. www.artspotproductions.org

Ashé Cultural Center

Black-owned cultural and community space. www.ashecac.org

APPENDIX I: SOCIAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS 271

Backstreet Cultural Museum

Cultural center preserving the history and culture of Black Mardi Gras. www.backstreetmuseum.org

Community Book Center

African and African American-centered bookstore and community space. www.communitybookcenter.com

Craige Cultural Center

Community space and cultural center in the Algiers neighborhood. 1800 Newton Street, New Orleans, LA 70114

Guardians of the Flame Cultural Arts Collective

Preserving New Orleans’s Black Mardi Gras cultural traditions.

House of Dance and Feathers

Lower Ninth Ward space dedicated to preserving New Orleans culture. www.houseofdanceandfeathers.com

Iron Rail Bookstore and Infoshop

Anarchist infoshop and lending library. www.ironrail.org

Islamic Shura Council of Greater New Orleans

Organization of New Orleans’s Muslim community.

Junebug Productions

African American Arts company, preserving the civil rights traditions of the Free Southern Theatre. http://junebugproductions.blogspot.com

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender
Community Center of New Orleans
Builds, strengthens, and unifies the Greater New Orleans area LGBTQ community. www.lgccno.net

McKenna Museum of African American Art

Dedicated to New Orleans African American art. www.themckennamuseum.com

Mondo Bizarro

Creates original, multidisciplinary art and fosters partnerships in local, national, and interna- tional communities. www.mondobizarro.org

Neighborhood Gallery

Exposure and support for artists. www.theneighborhoodgallery.com

Neighborhood Story Project

Works with writers in neighborhoods around New Orleans to write and publish books about their communities. www.neighborhoodstoryproject.org

272 FLOODLINES

New Orleans Kid Camera Project

Uses photography training and support to help young people express themselves. www.kidcameraproject.org

PATOIS: The New Orleans Human Rights Film and Arts Festival

Organizes events, amplifies local voices, and builds community at the intersection of arts and social justice. www.patoisfilmfest.org

Porch Cultural Organization and Center

Community-based organization using the arts to effect social change. www.theporch-7.com

Social Aid and Pleasure Club Task Force

An alliance of the city’s social aid and pleasure clubs.

Tambourine and Fan

Works with young people in the Treme community to pass on New Orleans art and culture. Treme Community Center, 1600 St. Philip Street, New Orleans, LA, 70116

Tekrema Center for Art and Culture

African American community space in New Orleans’s Lower Ninth Ward. www.thetekremacenter.com

Zeitgeist Multi-disciplinary Arts Center

Film and arts space in Central City New Orleans. www.zeitgeistinc.net

OTHER SOUTHERN AND GULF COAST SOCIAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS

Friends of Justice

Supports struggles against injustice in criminal cases across Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi. www.friendsofjustice.wordpress.com

Institute for Southern Studies

Nonprofit research center working to bring lasting social and economic change. www.southernstudies.org

Miami Workers Center

Building working-class community power in Miami. www.theworkerscenter.org

Mississippi Immigrants’ Rights Alliance (MIRA)

Advocacy organizing and education for immigrants’ rights. www.yourmira.org

Mississippi Workers Center

Grassroots worker advocacy. 213 Main Street, Greenville, MS, 38701

Organizing in the Trenches

Founded by Caseptla Bailey and Catrina Wallace, family members of one of the Jena Six, to continue struggles for social justice. PO Box 831, Jena, LA, 71342

APPENDIX I: SOCIAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS 273

Project South

Atlanta-based movement building organization. www.projectsouth.org

Southerners On New Ground (SONG)

Envisioning a world where the third-shift factory worker and the drag queen at the bar down the block see their lives as connected and are working together for liberation. www.southernersonnewground.org

Take Back the Land

Miami-based collective empowering the Black community to determine how to use land for the benefit of the community. www.takebacktheland.org

NATIONAL ALLIES

The Advancement Project

A civil rights law, policy, and communication “action tank.” www.advancementproject.org

Catalyst Project

White antiracist collective based in California. www.collectiveliberation.org

Center for Constitutional Rights

Uses law for social justice struggles. www.ccrjustice.org

ColorofChange

Online resource for racial justice organizing. www.ColorofChange.org

INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence

A national activist organization of radical feminists of color advancing a movement to end violence against women of color and their communities. www.incite-national.org

Malcolm X Grassroots Movement

Defending human rights and promoting self-determination. www.mxgm.org

National Economic and Social Rights Initiative (NESRI)

Advocacy for a human rights vision in the United States. www.nesri.org

Rainbow Push Coalition

Religious and social development organization led by Reverend Jesse Jackson Sr. www.rainbowpush.org

Right to the City Alliance

Movement-building alliance of community-based organizations. www.righttothecity.org

US Human Rights Network

Building links between organizations to promote U.S. accountability to universal human rights standards. www.ushrnetwork.org

V-Day

Founded by Vagina Monologues author Eve Ensler to stop violence against women and girls. www.vday.org

 

 

 

LETTER FROM THE PEOPLE OF NEW ORLEANS TO OUR FRIENDS AND ALLIES

December 15, 2006

 

Cherice Harrison-Nelson, director and curator, Mardi Gras Indian Hall of Fame; Royce Os- born, writer/producer; Greta Gladney, fourth- generation Lower Ninth Ward resident; Corlita Mahr, media justice advocate; Judy Watts, Pres- ident/CEO, Agenda for Children; Robert “Kool Black” Horton, Critical Resistance; Jen- nifer Turner, Community Book Center; Mayaba

Liebenthal, INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence, Critical Resistance; Norris Hender- son, co-director, Safe Streets/Strong Communi- ties; Ursula Price, outreach and investigation coordinator, Safe Streets/Strong Communities; Evelyn Lynn, managing director, Safe Streets/Strong Communities; Shana griffin, INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence;

 

Min. J. Kojo Livingston, founder, Liberation Zone/Destiny One Ministries; Shana Sassoon, New Orleans Network Neighborhood Housing Services of New Orleans; Althea Francois, Safe Streets/Strong Communities; Malcolm Suber, People’s Hurricane Relief Fund; Saket Soni, New Orleans Workers’ Justice Project; Nick Slie, I-10, Witness Project, co-artistic director, Mondo Bizarro; Catherine Jones, organizer and co-founder, Latino Health Outreach Project; Jennifer Whitney, coordinator, Latino Health Outreach Project; S. Mandisa Moore, INCITE! Women of Color New Orleans ; Aesha Rasheed, project manager, New Orleans Net- work; Dix deLaneuville, educator; Rebecca Snedeker, filmmaker; Catherine A. Galpin, RN, FACES, and Children’s Hospital; Grace Bauer, Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children; Xochitl Bervera, Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children; Bess Car- rick, producer/director; John Clark, professor of philosophy, Loyola University; Diana Dunn, People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond, European Dissent; Courtney Egan, artist; Lou Furman, Turning Point Partners; Ariana Hall, Director, CubaNOLA Collective; Gwendolyn Midlo Hall, historian, writer, and lecturer, New Orleans and Mississippi Pine Belt; Susan Hamovitch, filmmaker/teacher, NYC/New Orleans; Russell Henderson, lecturer, Dillard University and organizer, Rebuilding Louisana Coalition; Ms. Deon Haywood, events coordi- nator, Women With A Vision Inc.; Rachel Herzing, Critical Resistance, Oakland; Rev. Doug Highfield, Universal Life Church, Cherokee, AL; Joyce Marie Jackson, PhD., Cultural Researcher, LSU Dept. of Geography & Anthropology, and co-founder of Cultural

Crossroads, Inc., Baton Rouge Elizabeth K. Jeffers, teacher; Dana Kaplan, Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana; Vi Landry, freelance jour- nalist, New Orleans/New York; Bridget Lehane, European Dissent and People’s Insti- tute for Survival and Beyond; Karen-kaia Liv- ers, Alliance for Community Theaters, Inc.; Rachel E. Luft, assistant professor of sociology, Department of Sociology, University of New Orleans; Damekia Morgan, Families and Friends of Louisiana ‘s Incarcerated Children; Ukali Mwendo, hazardous materials specialist, NOFD, president, Provisional Government— Republic of New Afrika/New Orleans, LA, former resident of the Lafitte Housing Devel- opment; Thea Patterson, Women’s Health & Justice Initiative; J. Nash Porter, documentary photographer and co-founder of Cultural Crossroads, Inc., Baton Rouge; Gloria Powers, arts project manager; Bill Quigley, Loyola Pro- fessor of Law; Linda Santi, Neighborhood Housing Services of New Orleans; Tony Sfer- lazza, director, Plenty International NOLA; Heidi Lee Sinclair, MD, MPH, Baton Rouge Children’s Health Project; Justin Stein, neigh- borhood relations coordinator and community mediator, Common Ground Health Clinic; Audrey Stewart, Loyola Law Clinic; Tracie L. Washington, Esq., co-director, Louisiana Justice Institute; Scott Weinstein, former co-director of the Common Ground Health Clinic; Melissa Wells, New Orleans resident; Jerald L. White, Bottletree Productions; Morgan Williams, Student Hurricane Network, co-founder; Gina Womack, Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children

Pledge in Support of a Just Rebuilding of St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, and the U.S. Gulf Coast

Organizations Endorsing:

Action Coalition for Racial, Social, and Environmental Justice—University of New Orleans; Advancement Project; Advocates for Environmental Human Rights; C3/Hands Off Iberville; Caffin Avenue Church of God; Coastal Women for Change; Common Ground Health Clinic; Community Church Unitarian Universalist—New Orleans; Emerging ChangeMakers Network; Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children; Homeless Action Team of Tulane University (HATT); Jesuit Social Research Institute, Loyola University; Junebug Produc- tions; Katrina Rita Diaspora Solidarity; Loyola

University Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild; Louisiana Justice Institute; Lower Ninth Ward Center for Sustainable Engage- ment and Development; Lower 9th Ward Homeowners’ Association; Mayday New Orleans; Mennonite Central Committee— New Orleans; Mississippi Center for Justice; Mondo Bizarro; Moving Forward Gulf Coast, Inc.; National Economic and Social Rights Initia- tive (NESRI); New Orleans Palestine Solidar- ity; New Americans Social Club (New Orleans Holocaust Survivors Organization); PATOIS: The New Orleans International Human Rights Film Festival; People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond; Poverty & Race Research Action Council; Pyramid Community Parent Resource Center; Southern Institute for Education and Research; Survivors Village; US Human Rights Network; Zion Travelers Cooperative Center