NAACP Statement on Flooding in Louisiana
Baltimore, MD – The NAACP issued the following statement in response to the floods ravaging communities across Louisiana.
We at the NAACP write to express our grief at the lives lost and damage done due to intense flooding throughout southeastern Louisiana. But with the waters and the death toll still rising, we must do more than mourn. We applaud President Obama’s decision to declare the situation in four parishes a “major emergency” that warrants federal attention and funding, and we encourage him to do the same for other parishes that become in-need. As we were tragically reminded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Louisiana is a state of stark racial and socioeconomic divides, and federal support can be vital to making sure that communities of color get the help they deserve. Currently, more than 10,000 of the 20,000 rescued Louisianans are taking refuge in shelters; we must make sure that they have access to adequate temporary housing. With the roads and waterways in disarray, there is no time to wait.
Looking ahead, beyond the weeks of recovery to come, we must make sure Americans recognize these floods for what they are: alarming examples of climate change and environmental injustice. With water levels so precariously high, residents of Louisiana cannot afford to deny the reality of climate change. This is already the second flood to be labeled a “major disaster” this year. And beneath each flood lurks an ongoing disaster: the disproportionate toll that climate change takes on communities of color in Louisiana and across the nation. From inadequate protections against rising water in East Baton Rouge, to unsafe drinking water in Flint, to toxic coal fumes in Kansas City, African American communities are shouldering the worst of America’s abuse of the environment. These are matters of civil rights and human rights, and the NAACP is committed to righting these wrongs. We will fight to ensure that the disaster response in Louisiana is equitably implemented, and we will continue our efforts, strong as ever, to raise awareness of this dangerously under-acknowledged injustice.
