When I read Bill Quigley's article about HUD's approval of plans to demolish thousands of livable public housing apartments in New Orleans, one sentence in particular jumped out at me:
Representatives Barney Frank and Maxine Waters chair the committee and subcommittee with oversight of HUD.
Being from Massachusetts, it struck me that Massachusetts residents represented by Barney Frank have a unique opportunity to play a role in the fight against HUD's decision to demolish the C.J. Peete, B.W. Cooper, Lafitte, and St. Bernard housing projects in New Orleans—homes to over 4000 families before Hurricane Katrina.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, as the ranking minority member of the Financial Services Committee, Frank has more than once called on HUD to respond appropriately to the Gulf Coast's massive housing crisis. But stopping the demolitions and bringing displaced New Orleanians back into their homes requires more than good positions. Frank needs to halt a process that has already been approved and launch a Congressional investigation. I believe that Frank will need to feel strong support from his constituents in order for him take the necessary actions.
Therefore I have been doing some organizing, which I hope to tell more about soon. In the meantime, you can check out the Gulf Coast Fair Housing Network website:
The site is still bare bones, but it gives you all the information you need if you are a 4th Congressional District of MA resident who wants to give Barney Frank a call to let him know that you support:
- Immediate cessation of the demolition plans for New Orleans public housing.
- A Congressional investigation into the HUD decision to demolish thousands of livable public housing apartments in New Orleans.
- The right of displaced public housing residents to return home to New Orleans immediately.
I will be adding more information and documents over time. I also have plans to expand the scope of the site beyond this particular crisis in New Orleans. After all, the post-Katrina housing crisis is region wide, for the whole Gulf Coast.
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Photo: Inside a vacant apartment in the Lafitte housing project, New Orleans, LA, October, 2006 (John Fernandez)
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