May 13 – May 23
New Orleans
New Orleans is known for its lively French Quarter and its Mardi Gras festival, but other important aspects of the city are overlooked. New Orleans is a city of resilience in multiple ways that extend beyond its party nature. With 2nd Line Tours, Jay, our tour guide, shared the history behind New Orleans. He discussed its roots in African and native cultures stemming from the Transatlantic Slave trade. We learned that many of the herbs that were used by New Orleanians’ ancestors are still used today, like sage. Remnants of slavery are still apparent in other parts of New Orleans in ways you may not expect. The structure of buildings are still, more or less, the same as when the buildings were erected. In fact, the Louis Armstrong family home is still there today! While in New Orleans, you may notice broken shards of glass or needles standing out of the fencing. This was placed in hopes of preventing slaves from escaping and for slaves who had escaped. Slaves that did manage to flee the estate would cut themselves and be hunted by bloodhounds.
The resilience of New Orleans shows itself in the persistence of African heritage and tradition despite European colonization and enslavement. The same can be said about the spirituality that exists in New Orleans, like Voodoo. Voodoo is often demonized in society, but it should be known that it exists to connect ancestors and present descendants while emphasizing a connection to the elements: Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, and Spirits. The spiritual practice of Voodoo was sacred to these people, as nature and earth was the connection to ancestors. It is known and respected in these areas that Voodan is a spiritual healing practice.
Jay also discussed funeral tradition in New Orleans, for those who have never seen a funeral in New Orleans: there is a normal service, but afterward, the pallbearers carry the casket out the doors and start the first line of the celebration. The second line follows behind the casket. The second line consists of family members who dance behind their deceased loved ones. The third line is open to the public and anyone in the streets who wants to join the celebration.
However, New Orleans, like any city, isn’t without its criticisms. New Orleans is a city focused on tourism. So much so that the city lacks any schools for the younger residents that live there. Students who have to go to school must travel outside of the city or enroll in a charter school. On the topic of education, many students aren’t made aware of the three brave black women who desegregated McDonough 19 after Brown vs Board of Education. On November 14th, 1960, the then 6-year old girls: Leona Tate, Tessie Prevost, and Gail Etienne desegregated the McDonough 19 elementary school 
and continued to go to the school amidst the riots by angry caucasian parents that ensued. Due to the inaccurate descriptions of desegregating schools in textbooks, students in New Orleans aren’t even aware this happened only a few years ago, and some believe these women are dead. The city of New Orleans is a beautiful and lively city for those visiting, but for those that live there it is hard for them to make a living. Most of the government funding is pushed towards tourism and keeping the city entertaining for those who venture in and out. There is a lack of consideration for those who live there permanently, and many struggle to thrive in the city.
– Nia Boyd & Sarah Moore
New Orleans
Impact of Hurricane Katrina:
Those in Louisiana have shown an incredible amount of strength and care for their community. Hurricane Katrina hit the city like an act of war, especially in the ninth ward, where the majority of the population are black men and women. This area is historically known for the passing of generational wealth within black communities and other marginalized groups. The hurricane forcefully struck the ninth ward, pushing into the city, resulting in abandoned homes, buildings, and lots. The city still makes money off of the upkeep of these abandoned lots, and in large buildings, security gets paid money to watch over an abandoned building. The lower ninth ward is below the water level of the Mississippi River. This is where most of the civilians passed. When thinking about the impact of a hurricane, living at these levels results in immense damage and vulnerability. Every time you see an empty lot, it is an untold story of hardship.
Additionally, many people were eaten by marine life, or swept away in the floods, making the death count unknown. New Orleans took the barge company that broke through the levy to court, which New Orleans lost. The government issued trailers after the hurricane that were filled with formaldehyde, affecting the health of many locals. They live with chronic cancer illness to this day.
Many members of the community feel there were so many alternatives that could have been utilized in order to help the people in the ninth ward. BargING 347 is a theory that the bus-looking structure, called a barge, broke through the levy. They were trying to flood the ninth ward to save the French Quarter in the 1920s. This leads people to assume that the clearing out they did in 1920 is similar to the lack of response to modern hardship.
After the hurricane, the Make It Right Foundation teamed up with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to remake homes, but the homes are crumbling because they did not construct these homes with durable materials. They did not use cyprus or New Orleans standards to build any of the homes. The cyprus doesn’t rot from the humidity, making it a necessity when constructing homes. 
Prior to Katrina, around 50% of the residents had been homeowners. After Katrina flooded and devastated the ward, their homes had been taken from them and could not be saved as the insurance company claimed that because they didn’t have flood insurance it could not be covered. Many lost their homes, their family, and friends as a result of the devastation brought to New Orleans by Katrina in 2005. When you visit New Orleans, you should consider each overgrown, green plot of land as an untold story left in Katrina’s wake.
The 8th Ward:
The eighth ward is a place of true sanctuary and rich history. It is a place of marginalized groups finding prosperity within community and acceptance. They acknowledged the hardship present, and did something about it. The eighth ward was where the slaves met with the natives and other indigenous groups. They created a new way of life for the slaves, and when a slaver would come to take them back, they would be unrecognizable. The 8th ward is considered sacred land as many were fighting for survival. It was also a prestigious black community known as Black Wall Street. This area thrived and sustained itself for quite some time. However, they knocked over 200 homes in the urban renewal to put the large roads through. This forever changed the area. It is now a place of small communities, present homelessness, and is filled with people who long to revive the generational wealth of the area.
Street Interviews:
While in New Orleans, we had the opportunity to speak with a security guard. She shared her belief that the number one cause of homelessness is the lack of sufficient pay for employees. After Hurricane Katrina, the city decided to repair the casinos and tourist attractions rather than the local homes. When asked if she would leave, she said yes. She travels outside of the city to enjoy herself and only stays in the city to work. She has two children who live with her, and she encourages them to find work and home ownership outside of the city. Many tourists come from their hometowns to 
party and tour the city of New Orleans. The woman shared that the glamorous life in New Orleans is falsified and that the history of the city would show how false it is. The revenue only comes from people coming and going. The workers stay because they can’t afford to get up and leave. Not only that but their families are here, often stuck in the same situation.
One night after going out in the city, sitting down with a member of the homeless community was a rewarding conversation. We sat outside the hostel that the group was staying at and I asked him about himself. He had shared with me that he just got out of prison, having been there for twenty years. Additionally, he shared that he was in prison for fifteen dollars worth of drugs being on his person. He expressed his frustration in missing his mother’s funeral, and missing impactful moments of his nieces and nephews’ lives. He also shared that lack of pay and job opportunities that are sustainable lead to people resorting to side hustles like selling drugs. There is a need for accessible housing and better pay for the working class. With the constant in and out of the tourists, the authenticity of certain parts of the city are challenged, creating hardship for the locals who have lived there for years.
Okra Abbey:
Okra Abbey is a self-sustained garden and food source for the community. It is currently functioning next to a vacant French school, however each group that has bought the property allows the management and resources Okra Abbey provides to use the lot. They do not pay to be there, but provide
the community with so much value. They have dinners on Wednesdays and have a community fridge where they will put free food. On a typical Wednesday, they feed a minimum of fifty people. They apply for grants for sustained resources. The director, Hannah Quick, is from a Presbyterian church and is also the pastor. When talking about the coffee pot as a metaphor for Okra Abbey, she wants to facilitate a space where people feel belonging and ownership to the point where when the pot is empty, they fill it up as if they were at home. This creates a strong sense of purpose and community for those who are present in the space.
There is no income generated by the space and the meal is made at the church that is connected to a food bank. For funding, they began a new worshiping community program that was able to provide funding for about five years. When it comes to recruitment, they wanted to create more diversity and accessibility. They have international volunteers who stay with families in the community and give their service to Okra Abbey. The service groups and young people who come to work and live in the community are similar to The Peace Corps, but specifically for the Presbyterian church. 
Originally from California, Quick went to seminary for her master’s degree and has been at Okra Abbey for six years. She found her most recent church by reaching out and not selling the church to the city or developers. This allowed for a community focus and to use the space for creative activities and after-school programs. The gardens are surrounded by painted cinder blocks and a chain-link fence, with the gates wide open. As we worked in the garden removing weeds, community members walking by were excited to see people there, immediately speaking out to say hello.
Arizona:
Church Involvement: Pastor Tina of the Shalom Mennonite Church at Hotel Mccoy
Casa Alitas: A group of workers and volunteers that create a safe haven for those crossing. They aid in helping them find their way to their families after entering the country. Those crossing should be met with kindness and hospitality according to many churches in the area. Churches with similar goals often work together to make this happen. These churches are proud to walk with people even for the short amount of time that they have needs, in order to support migrants and their families. For those seeking refuge from violence, also known as asylum, they must wait until their court date, which takes place in New York. There is no known duration between acceptance of refuge and their court date for visas or any other resident status. That is when the services of the churches become crucial.
Additionally, detention centers are seen as prisons. The church and programs work to come into those
spaces to try and help them. They try to raise money to receive a bond for help getting out of the detention centers. Someone could end up being in these prisons for being in the right place at the wrong time, creating a deeply rooted fear of crossing the border, even though it is necessary. Also, they help families communicate with their loved ones inside these facilities. Corporations make a lot of money off of the detention centers. The argument of too much money going to immigration is invalid. Completely. There are so many people willing to help, but our own country is making that illegal.
– Sarah Moore & Nia Boyd
