Blaming the Victims
There is something very very wrong with this country.
The level of cognitive dissonance amongst the public, the media, and the government is again reaching a very high level. A disasater of unprecedented proportions has just occurred along the Gulf Coast of the US. While the city of New Orleans is essentially under water, the rule of law has disappeared, and there are bodies floating in the streets, most of the rest of the country has mostly turned a blind-eye to the situation. Oh, there is a good deal of news coverage and lip-service given to the suffering, but compared to the huge response from Americans to the sufferers of the Tsunami in the Indian Ocean several months ago, very little is being done here in our own country. My point is not to attack those who are not giving charity in this case... people are responding with financial donations; what bothers me is the attitude of many people, the media and the federal government to this disaster.
When speaking of the disaster, a common theme seems to be running across the television... "those people who did not evacuate New Orleans when they were told have only themselves to blame." This sentiment can be revealed in silences left by news anchors who purposely don't state their opinions about "why people didn't leave." The underlying meaning of this is that the residents of New Orleans must be stupid, regardless of the fact that this is one of the poorest cities in our country, and many people had neither a) a car, b) money to pay for gasoline, or c) somewhere else to go. The television cameras state what people are unwilling to say out loud. The victims of this crisis are predominantly black and poor. They are the ultimate "other" living within the midst of American prosperity.
Most people accept the truism that we are the richest country in the world. The dissonance appears when people cannot reconcile these images on the TV and in newspapers with this belief. How can such people exist in such a wealthy country? Despite the fact that 12-15% of Americans live below the official poverty line, most people are blissfully oblivious to this fact, as this segment of the population seldom appears in the media. Now we have images of poor refugees in our own country being shown regularly (the media cannot resist a disaster; ratings are just too good), we cannot reconcile our American beliefs that anyone can be successful if they try hard enough with such pictures without blaming the victims.
I have heard comments from people which inherently contradict each other and reveal deep-seated biases. In the last two days, I have heard people alternately wonder out loud "where the international aid is, when America does so much for the rest of the world" to stating that this is "Louisiana's problem, and not the responsibility of the federal government" (yes this was the same person). I have also heard people whisper (nobody wants to admit their biases out loud) that the reason why lawlessness has gripped the city is because the residents are black.
People loudly condemn the looting that is occuring in New Orleans as despicable. Of course we all know that stealing is wrong, but why are we not hearing a response to the massive price-gouging and profit-taking happening across the country as the energy industry cannot bear to make a cent less despite the fact that everyone else must suffer. They claim shortages are the reason, but couldn't they be expected to "tighten their belts" just a little, like the people of Lousiana, Mississippi, and Alabama? The reason is, of course, that we worship power, and despise the weak (though this is often mixed with condescending pity).
The response of the federal government has been far less than adequate. Granted, I understand the sentiment of many that this is the wrong time to be picking political battles, in the middle of a crisis, however if one sees very little response, it becomes a necessity to loudly criticize. It took almost a full week for the National Guard to be mobilized, and despite the fact that we are perfectly willing to send these same troops to fight battles clear across the globe. Getting troops and aid should have been a no-brainer for anyone in office
Maybe this person who suggested we need international aid is right. This country is far too childish to take care of its own problems... we need the stern moral hand of an adult to steer us right.
The level of cognitive dissonance amongst the public, the media, and the government is again reaching a very high level. A disasater of unprecedented proportions has just occurred along the Gulf Coast of the US. While the city of New Orleans is essentially under water, the rule of law has disappeared, and there are bodies floating in the streets, most of the rest of the country has mostly turned a blind-eye to the situation. Oh, there is a good deal of news coverage and lip-service given to the suffering, but compared to the huge response from Americans to the sufferers of the Tsunami in the Indian Ocean several months ago, very little is being done here in our own country. My point is not to attack those who are not giving charity in this case... people are responding with financial donations; what bothers me is the attitude of many people, the media and the federal government to this disaster.
When speaking of the disaster, a common theme seems to be running across the television... "those people who did not evacuate New Orleans when they were told have only themselves to blame." This sentiment can be revealed in silences left by news anchors who purposely don't state their opinions about "why people didn't leave." The underlying meaning of this is that the residents of New Orleans must be stupid, regardless of the fact that this is one of the poorest cities in our country, and many people had neither a) a car, b) money to pay for gasoline, or c) somewhere else to go. The television cameras state what people are unwilling to say out loud. The victims of this crisis are predominantly black and poor. They are the ultimate "other" living within the midst of American prosperity.
Most people accept the truism that we are the richest country in the world. The dissonance appears when people cannot reconcile these images on the TV and in newspapers with this belief. How can such people exist in such a wealthy country? Despite the fact that 12-15% of Americans live below the official poverty line, most people are blissfully oblivious to this fact, as this segment of the population seldom appears in the media. Now we have images of poor refugees in our own country being shown regularly (the media cannot resist a disaster; ratings are just too good), we cannot reconcile our American beliefs that anyone can be successful if they try hard enough with such pictures without blaming the victims.
I have heard comments from people which inherently contradict each other and reveal deep-seated biases. In the last two days, I have heard people alternately wonder out loud "where the international aid is, when America does so much for the rest of the world" to stating that this is "Louisiana's problem, and not the responsibility of the federal government" (yes this was the same person). I have also heard people whisper (nobody wants to admit their biases out loud) that the reason why lawlessness has gripped the city is because the residents are black.
People loudly condemn the looting that is occuring in New Orleans as despicable. Of course we all know that stealing is wrong, but why are we not hearing a response to the massive price-gouging and profit-taking happening across the country as the energy industry cannot bear to make a cent less despite the fact that everyone else must suffer. They claim shortages are the reason, but couldn't they be expected to "tighten their belts" just a little, like the people of Lousiana, Mississippi, and Alabama? The reason is, of course, that we worship power, and despise the weak (though this is often mixed with condescending pity).
The response of the federal government has been far less than adequate. Granted, I understand the sentiment of many that this is the wrong time to be picking political battles, in the middle of a crisis, however if one sees very little response, it becomes a necessity to loudly criticize. It took almost a full week for the National Guard to be mobilized, and despite the fact that we are perfectly willing to send these same troops to fight battles clear across the globe. Getting troops and aid should have been a no-brainer for anyone in office
Maybe this person who suggested we need international aid is right. This country is far too childish to take care of its own problems... we need the stern moral hand of an adult to steer us right.
posted by nomis at 9/03/2005
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