The Many Faces of Poverty

Poverty takes familiar faces. It’s hidden in the elderly gentleman who seems to be oh so friendly. It’s hidden in the thoughts of a mother and child, resolutely rebuilding a life from an abuser of a husband and father. It’s hidden in the quietness of a teenager keeping to himself in a ghostly presence.

And we do nothing, yet I have pledged to make a difference. Is it ignorance that influences our luck or is luck blind like justice is supposed to be? New Orleans is in shambles, mold, food lines and destruction, a city in ruins, as is a region.

So many think cold hearted thoughts because it’s much easier to sever the reality of that disaster. Where was FEMA? Where are they now? As a country we are spread so thin and yet cold hearted individuals are negligent in their actions. Maybe it’s a crime but maybe they are just poor performers in their duties. In the end they are one of the same.

We hear the stories of disaster and of heroic deeds. Maybe there true and maybe it’s just the hope we are trying to cling to. Today almost eight months ago, they’re still finding bodies. Why?

Because a President came into office and gutted FEMA, into a shell of an organization it once was. Everyone knew the storm was going to reek, havoc and yet they weren’t prepared. Personally I know after the storm, a call went out for Ex-FEMA. Trucks filled with ice moved their loads from city to city, never delivering what they carried. Today FEMA house trailers sit hundreds of miles to the north in other cities . . . Insurance companies refuse to pay on many properties, citing their coverage doesn’t cover damage by flood, when roofs are missing and so are the walls.

And no one wants to pick up the ball and run with it . . . The next president of this great country is the man who can bring us together. He is the man that will rebuild the south because it’s the right thing to do. Sure we can argue over whether we should rebuild, but let me ask you, if it were your homes would you want to rebuild? If generation after generation of your families had lived in New Orleans, would you want to rebuild?

Of course you would . . . The powers have always known that the city was underwater. Several Presidents even studied what to do if tragedy occurred and still they refused to spend the money to fix the dikes. And so a natural disaster all but leveled an American city and no body came. For four days no one came. And then out of the murky water came a general, to ease a growing uneasiness, and for a while calm came to the area.

Help the many faces of poverty . . . We must not let poverty keep us from feeling their pain. We must not let cold hearted media keep us from acting. Write your Senator, Congressman and local newspapers and tell create a task force to help Katrina Victims, to rebuild the south.

Dan Hanosh
Dreams Are Yours To Share