While the body count from Hurricane Starrkeysha starts to mount up to staggering unimaginable numbers I continue to be educated by this administrations policies in regards to dealing with their citizens. We all enjoyed the photos of the ‘looters’ and the ‘finders’ and it further reinforced the notion that mainstream media slants even their basic coverage during a time of national crisis.
There has been some more subtle language put into use that I would ask you to look for as you watch your television sets and you read your morning daily papers. Take notice to when and where the term ‘refugee’ is applied, and when and where the term ‘evacuee’ is used. Study the deference and respect shown to persons that are termed ‘evacuees’ and then notice the judgement of disdain given to people considered ‘refugees’.
The HAVES and the HAVE-NOTS has a very clear demarcation, especially in New Orleans where they have a tremendous number of people requiring public assistance. Even the working class folks in this town live at or below the national poverty line. So when the call came to leave everything that you own and walk miles to the Louisiana SuperDome and some of the other unspecified triage points I can see why people had difficulty.
To turn around and label people as refugees is profound and disheartening. The established meaning of the word describes a person seeking asylum in another country. So is FEMA using this word as code by telling us that their response to the disaster wasn’t thorough because the people affected aren’t really Americans???
Hmmmm…
I’ve gotta admit, I’ve been focused on the “looter vs. finder” thing so hard that I hadn’t paid much attention to the “New Orleans Refugees vs. Mississippi Evacuees” slant. (Do you think there are some cats at NBC pitching that for a reality show?)
Look at it this way… maybe “refugee” is a more honest word. Let’s face it, if a Greyhound full of 9th Ward families had shown up in Houston… or Atlanta… or Money Making Mahn-ha-in two weeks ago, they would have been treated they they were from a foreign country… the country of people with no credit cards, direct deposit, savings, or voter registration cards.
That’s the part that no one wants to admit.
By the way… this is a nice site. I just got the email this morning and already sent it to a few people.
I just put dp.com on my Favorites menu.
Thank you for the feedback. The site still needs work but we are on the grind 24-7 in our attempt to help everyone read between the lies, er, LINES.
Anyhoo, getting back to the main point, I see a lot more subtlety in the use of the terms. After growing up and for years only hearing the word ‘refugees’ when I saw desperate people of color around the globe seeking asylum or just plain assistance I feel the hackles on my neck rise when this word is applied to Americans.
How is this possible? Refugees are usually trying to escape from a country that is overrun by an evil, callous dictator that would be willing to sacrifice millions of people to maintain his power. But this is America, and that could NEVER happen here.