In 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck the area of New Orleans and the storm surge led to 53 levee breaches in the federally built levee system protecting metro New Orleans and the failure of the 40 Arpent Canal levee flooding 80% of the city.
Chaos ensued and over 300,000 residents attempted to evacuate the area. During the disaster the National Guard designated the Algiers Point ferry landing as an official evacuation site, where flood victims were to be loaded onto buses headed for safety in Texas.
Algiers Point is a predominantly white area of the city, while the rest of Algiers is predominantly black citizens.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, looting, violence and other criminal activity became a serious problems.
The looters included gangs of armed gunmen, and gunfire was heard all over the city.
One report of violence involved police killing six people on the Danziger Bridge. In the Algiers Point area people began to target individuals of the other race.
White vigilante groups were formed, which patrolled the streets of New Orleans. They are estimated to have killed a total of 11 African American victims.
White individuals were also murdered during the days following the flooding of New Orleans. The local police have never conducted investigations into these crimes.
Sources:
The Nation, December 17, 2008 Title: “Katrina's Hidden Race War”
Author: A.C. Thompson
The Nation, December 18, 2008
Title: “Body of Evidence”
Author: A.C. Thompson
