NEW ORLEANS -- New Orleans is a
smaller city than it was before Hurricane Katrina, and much of the loss
in population is among blacks who have been unwilling or unable to
return, Census figures released Thursday showed.
In 2000, there were about 323,000 blacks in New Orleans compared with about 206,870 in 2010, making up about 60 percent of the city.
“Who recovered depended very much on race and class,” said Lance Hill, the head of the Southern Institute for Education and Research, a race relations research center based at Tulane University. “We have forgotten that there are over 100,000 African-Americans who remain displaced.”
In 2000, there were about 323,000 blacks in New Orleans compared with about 206,870 in 2010, making up about 60 percent of the city.
“Who recovered depended very much on race and class,” said Lance Hill, the head of the Southern Institute for Education and Research, a race relations research center based at Tulane University. “We have forgotten that there are over 100,000 African-Americans who remain displaced.”
The Census Bureau said the Crescent City’s population was 343,829, a
decrease of about 106,000 people from 2005, the year Katrina hit.
“The empty homes are everywhere,” said Dennis Scott, president of the Lakewood East Homeowners Association, a hard-hit neighborhood in eastern New Orleans. “Right next door to me there’s a family that hasn’t returned, across the street a family hasn’t returned.”
Many of the homes in his neighborhood have been fixed, while others remain damaged. And without the residents and lingering uncertainties about the state of levee protections, stores, a nearby hospital and restaurants remain shuttered.
William Rouselle, a political consultant, said the city’s recovery has been uneven with black neighborhoods like eastern New Orleans, Gentilly and the Lower 9th Ward getting less attention. He said many of the blacks who haven’t returned lived in public housing, most of which were razed after Katrina and are in varying stages of being rebuilt.
More “The empty homes are everywhere,” said Dennis Scott, president of the Lakewood East Homeowners Association, a hard-hit neighborhood in eastern New Orleans. “Right next door to me there’s a family that hasn’t returned, across the street a family hasn’t returned.”
Many of the homes in his neighborhood have been fixed, while others remain damaged. And without the residents and lingering uncertainties about the state of levee protections, stores, a nearby hospital and restaurants remain shuttered.
William Rouselle, a political consultant, said the city’s recovery has been uneven with black neighborhoods like eastern New Orleans, Gentilly and the Lower 9th Ward getting less attention. He said many of the blacks who haven’t returned lived in public housing, most of which were razed after Katrina and are in varying stages of being rebuilt.
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