Justice in New Orleans

posted by Peter Rothberg on 12/19/2008 @ 1:38pm

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In an 18-month investigation appearing this week on the cover of The Nation (directed and underwritten by the Investigative Fund of the Nation Institute), reporter A.C. Thompson paints a terrifying picture of New Orleans in the days following Hurricane Katrina. Black residents, desperate to flee the Lower Ninth Ward, were gunned down with impunity by white vigilantes in the Algiers Point neighborhood, which stood between the Lower Ninth Ward and the nearest rescue point. In Katrina's Hidden Race War and a companion piece, Body of Evidence, Thompson uncovers at least eleven unreported, un-investigated vigilante shootings.

This exclusive Nation Institute video features Thompson talking with two victims of post-Katrina violence describing their experiences fleeing vigilantes as well as some of the unrepentant shooters defending their actions.

You can also hear Thompson elaborate on his findings in an interview this morning with Amy Goodman on Democracy Now!

Despite shocking and an abundant amount of evidence, Louisiana's law enforcement agencies have inexplicably refused to investigate the alleged crimes. Some members of Congress have fortunately been less negligent. Rep. John Conyers, the incoming Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, issued a public statement Thursday, expressing concern and vowing to looking into the matter.

"I am deeply disturbed by the reported incidents in Algiers Point, Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina," said Conyers, a Michigan Democrat. Algiers Point residents, Conyers continued, "allegedly shot randomly at African Americans who had fled to the area escaping the effects of the storm. Several injuries and deaths were reported. I am particularly concerned about accounts that local police fueled, rather than extinguished, the violence."

Conyers' concern is helping focus attention on the issue and our friends at Color of Change have launched a petition demanding that Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell, and, if necessary, the US Department of Justice investigate the shootings in the face of the dereliction of duty of the local authorities. Please click here to join the call for justice in New Orleans.

Comments (37)

I don't have time to watch the video right now...but if the shootings were unreported, then how CAN they be investigated? I hope that's just a misprint.

Posted by usc1 at 12/19/2008 @ 2:27pm
I'm sure all manner of things went on down there during and after Katrina,some things will probably never come to light. Unfortunately when chaos reins in a case like Katrina,it's hard to control all the bad things that may be happening all around you. No doubt things were hushed up or not reported, as wrong as that is and someone should be held accountable, I doubt there will be anything done at this late stage.

Posted by Caj at 12/19/2008 @ 3:41pm
I have been to the ninth ward 6 times since Katrina and all I hear from the locals, my friends who work there, my business associates who do business in NO...is that the shootings that go on night are true...

and that they are %99.999 gang related to the drug traffic that picked up when the people were sent to Houston and opportunity opened up ...and that the crime has been black on black...3 blacks shot in a white neighborhood...well, that should make head lines..

but remember, Obama is elected...

and this type of crime need not take up so much space, as it generates enough eye rolling as it is...

murder is murder,, but the black on white hysteria is not born out by data.

the real probleme is black on black..

On the way out of the French quarter, the police has access blocked off to the ninth ward...they regulate who goes in and out...and it aint white people looking for black people to shoot...

this type of story constantly hyped up is going to fall on more and more deaf ears, since it is not the norm anymore..

that went out 35 years ago

Go there Peter..ask around...I did...

The crime problem is crime..not race.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/19/2008 @ 10:11pm
Though I certainly don't want to trivialize all of the more serious thought in the other three posts here, and I apologize if I convey that impression...

is it bad that when I say the main article tagline "Katrina's hidden race war," I grew very confused and wondered what in the world Katrina Vanden Heuvel had been up to? :D

Posted by Thrawn at 12/20/2008 @ 11:11am
On a more serious note, I just watched the video, and...wow. Though I can certainly disagree with Nation reporters on their interpretations of many different events, the direct testimony of vigilantes themselves is awfully damning. Though one could theoretically question how representative their specific opinions are, it seems like there is at the VERY least something going on that absolutely deserves to be investigated. Even if it was only these few people, this shouldn't be shut away.

Posted by Thrawn at 12/20/2008 @ 11:46am
"...braggadotious (sic) exadurating (sic) drunks and blatant witness lies and misrepresentations."

"the real probleme (sic) is black on black.."

"The crime problem is crime..not race."

Barely literate comments like these are always to be expected when an article discusses issues of race or racism. Such comments almost never address the specifics of the article. They always convey the same general message: black people are naturally untrustworthy and given to violent criminal behavior. Such a closely held belief (akin to a religious belief) doesn't require any explanation or support. And, it is quite reality-proof.

I imagine that posters of such statements spend lots of time looking for similar stories to angrily react to, furiously typing their one message over and over again.

Posted by RMT at 12/20/2008 @ 10:08pm
Posted by comanchenation at 12/20/2008 @ 10:57pm

lol

I'll take my facts from somebody who can spell the word "exaggerate".

Let's not even touch upon braggadotious.

Who said it was a paradise again? Because the person you were responding certainly didn't, and it was never mentioned as a paradise anywhere in the article...

Perhaps you need to get yourself back to the 3rd grade to work on reading comprehension and spelling before you start dictating facts.

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/20/2008 @ 11:14pm
Posted by comanchenation at 12/20/2008 @ 10:57pm

Interesting.

Some questions: What crime statistics are you referring to? How do crime statistics bare on the very real probability, given numerous witness statements, that vigilante attacks/murders occurred? By what criteria have you determined that these potential witnesses are not credible?

Finally, have you read the related article (from beginning to end)?

Posted by RMT at 12/20/2008 @ 11:54pm
"Louisiana's law enforcement agencies have inexplicably refused to investigate the alleged crimes"

what about Nagan's police department?

eleven people killed? what happened to the bodies? Any forensic evidence? This is a pretty sketchy investigative report.

Posted by twillie at 12/21/2008 @ 12:12am
Rmt,

What post are you refering to.. Exactly?

It is painfully obvious you didn't read mine...

Have you ever visited the ninth ward, or find it on the mine.

As far as my fellow posters spelling.....I can safely assume that he,like myself, is a victim of the public schools.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 12:20am
What does the crime rate or that "it's no liberal paradise" matter in relation to the article? Did you read the article or watch the video?

It's a non sequitor.

Posted by koroviev at 12/21/2008 @ 03:23am
I can safely assume that he,like myself, is a victim of the public schools.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 12:20am |

Inate idiocy cannot be blamed on public schools.

Posted by Balrog at 12/21/2008 @ 09:53am
I am going to assume that everyone here has signed the petition that Peter linked at the end of his fine post, right?

Excellent.

I knew I could count on the courageous hearts and keenly sharpened moral intellects of all of the bloaks who blog at The Nation.

;D

From the petition at Color of Change:

"Tell Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell, and the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the racist shootings, and to demand accountability from Louisiana's dysfunctional criminal justice system. "

Apparently, the likes of Johnny 'the monsta' Maasch have no compunction about pointing out the poor schools they attended, but simply cannot see potentially crippling corruption when it infests an institution like a police force....... or perhaps an entire military industrial complex?

Is there a charity that assists the ideologically blind, Peter?

If so, I vote that Act Now puts it in the spotlight soon.

Peace out, dudes.

Posted by b_kool_66 at 12/21/2008 @ 11:12am
As far as my fellow posters spelling.....I can safely assume that he,like myself, is a victim of the public schools.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 12:20am

That's not an excuse to make up words.

Here's a tip: read a book. They're absolutely chock full of all sorts of words you can learn to spell.

And Mr. Maasch, I've been to the ninth ward. I"ve been working in NO at various points throughout the past 3 years, working in and around the 9th ward (actual work, not whatever your old ass is doing, selling chinese shoes most likely).

Then again I wouldn't ever bring up what I've seen and heard there since it's an awfully sad, weak, and lame argument to make on this particular article. "I've heard things!" LOL! From who, the black porter that handles your baggage?

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/21/2008 @ 11:35am
In fact if you're so dense as to believe that all that drug violence you're talking about begins and ends there, with those particular people, you're even dumber than I thought.

Although leave it to somebody like yourself to completely miss the forest for the trees.

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/21/2008 @ 11:43am
Although I'll agree that the public schools need to be completely revamped so class time can be spent actually LEARNING something, instead of investing large amounts of class time to the assholes who, somehow, still can't spell the word "exaggerate" by the time they get to the 10th grade! How embarrassing!

Then to make things worse, some ridiculously stupid standards of education tests are being implemented in order to make sure "no child is left behind!" So instead of teaching, you can guarantee teachers all across the USA will be teaching their students to pass a test created by the government. That same government we keep hearing needs to be smaller!

Now we can all sit around wondering why all other industrialized countries absolutely shit on the US when it comes to how smart their kids are. Hooray!

That sort of feel good, namby-pamby egalitarianism is most assuredly a prime example of PC-liberalism (instituted by the borderline illiterate George Bush, go figure) working it's magic.

Watch some more TV America.

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/21/2008 @ 11:59am
These were hate crimes, period. Why the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice is not investigating this is beyond me.

The white 'crackers' in the video are monsters and if they did what they say they did, all of them should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Instead of doing the right thing and trying too help they sought the lowest level of human indifference and hatred.

Governor Bobby Jindal, Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell should be on top of this.

Jindal of all people should have a zero tolerance for race related crimes.

Posted by jeffe at 12/21/2008 @ 12:20pm
I grew up in Algiers Point. Left in the mid 80's. I am ashamed but not shocked by the behavior of a group of ignorant people. The area I knew was mixed with both educated whites and very isolated working class whites. Like anywhere else there are those people who make us all looks like fools, but this was criminal and should be investigated. Even though the whites in the video were drunk, I do believe they did the things they said. I can only hope the guilty parties will be prosecuted, and if not, that the hate on both sides will come to an end. It is the ignorant ones that keep the hate alive. My heart goes out to those that were victims of these horrible crimes. Also, Algiers Point is not the 9th ward, and the people in the 9th ward or anywhere else in New Orleans would not likely know what is going on there. It is a very isolated little area on the west bank.

Posted by asd2 at 12/21/2008 @ 2:06pm
"I've heard things!" LOL! From who, the black porter that handles your baggage?

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/21/2008 @ 11:35am "

The black porters I have used make $80k a year...in cash....

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 4:08pm
Texas,

I am aware you love the public schools and how they are run...

...which is why I know you will be pleased with the same model combined with the Post Office unions and efficiency of the TSA to be put in charge of your health care along with the that of your wife and children...

Stay healthy is my advice.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 4:29pm
"I've heard things!" LOL! From who, the black porter that handles your baggage?

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/21/2008 @ 11:35am "

The black porters I have used make $80k a year...in cash....

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 4:08pm

LOL, oh I'm sure. That couldn't be another outrageous exaggeration from another outrageous person...

And I left no room for sarcasm. Public schooling in this country is absolutely shit, which would help explain why COMANCHE has such a problem with polysyllabic words.

Although I'm sure Barack will only make the mess Mr. Bush has left behind worse.

No Child Left Behind....does it get any funnier than that?

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/21/2008 @ 9:57pm
Nothing is funnier than public schooling except those who believe the unionized shop it has become is good for the students and is educating our children.

As far as $80k(and they all ain't black,sorry) porters,check out any MAJOR airport and do a little math. I am all for them earning as much cash as possible... And keeping it.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 10:06pm
I still act like I believe the republican party is for small government! I'm a gigantic hypocrite and a poser! Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 4:29pm

Posted by TexasFlood at 12/21/2008 @ 10:07pm
If you had any understanding of conservatism or my view of conservative principles,then you would be embarassed of your last post.

Everyone who reads everyone here for the last 6 years or more has had to put up with my constant rage against Bush(both of them) and how both have ruined the Repub Party and have killed off conservative principles, and therefore has desecrated the office as much as Clinton, if not more

That should shine SOME kind of light on your view of me,my conservative belief and simple common understanding of conservatism in general and how the Repubs today have absndoned it.

Perhaps that might also help you understand why the Repubs lost power...... Were fired for good reasons.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/21/2008 @ 11:55pm
Now just HOW could the Nation celebrate the Christmas season without a little good ole fashion liberal race baiting and guilt mongering?

Posted by CHIP THORNTON at 12/22/2008 @ 07:44am
30 unreported killings. That's small potatos for the Big Easy. Just reading this made me think I was reading the National Inquirer in a checkout line.

Posted by pyeatte at 12/22/2008 @ 11:18am
I remember hearing how armed whites cut off access to Algiers. I never knew they actually killed people. Saddened but not surprised.

Posted by k330k at 12/22/2008 @ 12:47pm
One of our (Conservatives) favorite lines regards the "thin veneer of civilization". Growing up in Minnesota, we learn early never to trust the structural integrity of ice without corroborating evidence. It could mean you life.

We form governments by relinquishing freedoms to secure rights. (Rights come from God, but they are secured with guns.) The government does a good job of securing my rights to vote, worship freely, etc. But when push comes to shove, self-defense is my obligation. When the government loses it's ability to secure the rights I relinquish freedoms for, all bets are off.

It's not supposed to work that way, but it does. When the people responsible for making sure government functions correctly fail (First the Mayor, then the Governor), all bets are off.

Posted by Darin_the_Big_Fat_Troll at 12/22/2008 @ 12:50pm
Hey, why wasn't there ever and investigation into the reports of cannibalism at the Super Dome? Remember that? A black journalist on Salon.com "reported" that the people in the Super Dome had resorted to cannibalism within a few hours of taking shelter in the dome? When is Conyers going to get around to investigating that?

Posted by Darin_the_Big_Fat_Troll at 12/22/2008 @ 12:52pm
New Orleans was a hotbed of criminal activity long before Katrina; law enforcement in NO was, putting it nicely, spotty long before Katrina; in short the culture in NO differs from much of the rest of the United States. The article and the blog seem to suggest something else. Starting to investigate shootings this long after the fact when there was no contemporaneous investigation and when even autopsy files are lost,or incomplete is going to be an expensive exercise in futility. Think about this. No doubt the reporter contacted a lot of people, but to successfully prosecute someone for murder you have to prove that a certain named defendant intentionally killed a certain named victim at a certain time and place and that the defendant has no defense such as self-defense. You need prosecutors who will prosecute, hard evidence, and credible witnesses a jury will believe enough to return a guilty verdict. Lotsa Luck.

Posted by jsens at 12/22/2008 @ 1:24pm
Posted by jsens at 12/22/2008 @ 1:24pm

You are right about NO before Katrina. I went to school in NO for two years and it was known that a majority of murders went unsolved every year and the police department was corrupt. It'll take more than luck.

Posted by k330k at 12/22/2008 @ 1:28pm
".....You need prosecutors who will prosecute, hard evidence, and credible witnesses a jury will believe enough to return a guilty verdict......"

~Jsens @ 1:24pm

An excellent point no doubt.

On the other hand, even if the intended outcome of an investigation might be in serious doubt, there is a larger moral frame that is worthy of our attention here.

I am of the firm conviction that the most heinous types of criminal acts --those that exemplify the darkest nooks of the human psyche-- are the ones that most deserve to be spotlighted, if only for the purpose of bringing the subject into the national consciousness.

A brief reading some of the incredibly insensitive posts on this thread should be example enough to convince more thoughtful folks of the continuing need to drag out our filthiest laundry for full inspection.

I sincerely hope this story has legs --even if it doesn't ultimately result in convictions of those responsible for terrorizing the gentle souls I witnessed in the potent video clip Rothberg posted.

Posted by b_kool_66 at 12/22/2008 @ 2:37pm
One more thing.

It wouldn't hurt either, to put the New Orleans PD in the uncomfortable cross hairs of the national public eye. National embarrassment is one surefire way to shake the corrupt foundations of an entity that has apparently escaped larger notice for too long now.

Posted by b_kool_66 at 12/22/2008 @ 2:44pm
"It wouldn't hurt either, to put the New Orleans PD in the uncomfortable cross hairs of the national public eye. "

It has been my understanding that the NO police department as well as its local, county, and State govts have written the book on corruption and have also been in the public eye for generations...a poster child..

and the people of NO have really done nothing to change it...it has to come from the inside and the willingness to change...but if no one votes for honest people, but vote for machines instead...then nothing will change and change becomes nothing more than a campaign slogan...

and the more things look and stay the same....hhhhmmmmm...Illinois has a machine....

Off thread...

I saw an article that Pelosi claims the power center of DC is now California...

we are all in trouble then...jerry rigged local districts to be run by Dems in Sacremento until second coming, constant tax increases and "fees" levied with impunity on citizens as business and wealth flees the state, deficits beyond reason while begging the tax payers in the rest of US for loans WITHOUT a change in police, philosophy or spending cuts....

perfect...we are headed for the a tough time if Pelosi is correct.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/22/2008 @ 6:17pm
"I have been to the ninth ward 6 times since Katrina and all I hear from the locals, my friends who work there, my business associates who do business in NO"

how many of the above were poor and/or black?

Posted by darladoon at 12/22/2008 @ 8:39pm
Not that it matters to any one looking for facts....

, but most were white and the ones that provided the best info for me were black...and they were working on their propertys as I talked to them at the time.

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/22/2008 @ 11:11pm
Posted by comanchenation at 12/22/2008 @ 7:16pm

Yup....

and they are proud of it....

and wonder why I will not bring profits into US if earned overseas...

Posted by YourJomamma at 12/22/2008 @ 11:12pm