The Difference 

“You guys in New York can’t get a hole in the ground fixed and it’s five years later.”

Ray Nagin, Mayor of New Orleans

The Difference
By Carlleen Cairns
ST. MARY'S TODAY
 

          As we prepare to mark the fifth anniversary of September 11^th, there is nothing more I can add that has already not been said, or thought. For most of us just the mention of September 11^th immediately takes us back to the pain and shock of seeing the Twin Towers go down, the flames rising over the Pentagon and the heroes of flight United 93. The images of that day are forever burned into our memories.

          Since there is nothing I can add to that day or our memories. I will instead discuss the comments recently made by New Orleans Mayor, Ray Nagin when in a recent interview he was questioned about the lack of cleanup and rebuilding in New Orleans one year after Hurricane Katrina. Instead of answering the question, he pointed his finger north toward New York City and ground zero of the terrorists attacks upon this nation. Mayor Nagin referred to ground zero as a “hole in the ground.”

          Apparently, Mayor Nagin imagines himself heir apparent because of Hurricane Katrina, to the title of “America’s Mayor.”  Mayor Nagin you are no Mayor Rudy Giuliani! Since you are no Rudy Giuliani and you are having difficulty comprehending the difference between a natural disaster and a terrorist attack, let me explain.

           A hurricane is one of the few natural disasters that allows preparation. Preparation means pack up your stuff, board up your house and move.  If you are below sea level as much of New Orleans is, you move to higher ground. Areas below sea level are vulnerable to storm surges where high waves cause flooding and damage. Now factor in that New Orleans has levies that were built to withstand a Category 3 Hurricane and you know a Category 5 Hurricane is coming your way, you have but one option, head to higher ground further inland. You had days to prepare your city for the disaster coming your way. New York was blindsided they had no warning.

          You Mayor Nagin, implemented no plan for the protection of your city, your only plan was to cross your fingers and hope Hurricane Katrina struck elsewhere. When disaster struck New York City, Mayor Giuliani stepped forward with strong leadership and a plan. At no time during the disaster did you find Mayor Giuliani on the evening news demanding someone else do his job or pointing the finger of blame.

          However, you Mayor Nagin during the whole disaster and even one year later still dominate the evening news with your demands of assistance, your hand is frozen in the palm up position prepared for any and all handouts. You have managed to log more frequent flyer miles than an airline pilot. You have referred to New Orleans as America’s city, you are right America does own New Orleans, millions of tax dollars have poured into your city, you failed to act, the American taxpayer picked up the tab.

          When rescuers in New York held out their hands to those who needed rescuing those hands were grasped in desperation. When hands of rescuers in New Orleans were extended to those in need, they were shot at. You did not see those in New York walking around with stolen plasma televisions. In fact, the crime rate in New York dropped during the days after the terrorists attacks, unlike those in New Orleans who continued their criminal activity while people around them died.

          Mayor Giuliani galvanized his city into action; New Yorkers did not sit around and wait for others to clean up their city. Mayor Giuliani pointed the finger at no one, he did not have time to look for blame, he had a city to heal and  move forward. If Giuliani had the time and the warning you enjoyed, the Twin Towers would still be standing.

          What happened in New Orleans was an act of nature; most coastal cities at some time have experienced hurricanes and all that the hurricanes bring. What happened in New York is a daily reminder that there are people in this world that hate us.  New York was a city that came together as one city in a time of tragedy, they did their nation proud, New Orleans embarrassed us before the world.

          Mayor Giuliani did not demand that New York become an Italian City or a Jewish City, New York can and does accommodate everyone, yet you want New Orleans to become a “Chocolate City.”  So please explain to us why members of the black community who came to back to New Orleans looking for work as skilled labors and construction workers were sent packing after only a few days of work. These gentlemen were told to hit the street; “the Mexicans have arrived,” meaning cheap and exploitable labor. What a testament to the rebuilding of New Orleans, rebuilt on the backs of what amounts to slave labor.

          However you are correct, New York does still have “hole in the ground,” but the rubble has long since been carted away. As painful as it is maybe, that hole should stay there, a daily reminder that we are now a nation at war.

          I stood at ground zero on New Year’s Day of this year. The feeling is one I will not soon forget. Even though the streets of Lower Manhattan were busy when you arrived at ground zero, the sounds of the city faded into the distance. As I gazed at what had been two tall magnificent towers reaching into the heavens, I could smell the jet fuel burning, I could smell the fear of those trapped inside. If you listened you can still hear the screams of those who died that day and the sobs of those who survived. Although the horror of that day lingered all around you, you could also feel the bravery of those who rushed into burning buildings to save others, the spirit of those who died trying are still present.

          As I entered the terminal at Newark Airport I thought of those on board flight United 93, for they also flew out of Newark on that fateful day, I thought of the debt of gratitude this nation owes to them. We will never know where that fourth flight was headed; we only know the actions of the passengers saved countless lives on the ground. Unfortunately, my flight was delayed, so I had plenty of time to view the night sky of New York now missing two of her most prized possessions.

          Unlike Mayor Nagin, I view ground zero not as “a hole in ground,” but a testament to a city that survived the worst of man’s hatred.  As an American I am proud to stand with New Yorkers, they know how to shine when your worst nightmare becomes a reality. I wish I could say the same for Mayor Ray Nagin’s New Orleans.

          September 11, 2001 may we never forget.