Friday, September 2, 2005

I know I just posted a plea for donations to relief agencies-- but it bears repeating. If you haven't done it yet, please consider donating to one of the relief agencies working to
- evacuate the city
- rescue pets and other animals
- clean the toxins and poisons that will likely disrupt the ecosystem in ways we can only begin to imagine
- search for the dead in homes, under debris, in the streets
- find places to relocate the million-or-so people who are suddenly homeless (think about that for a minute)
- bring food, water, clothes, schoolbooks, and other supplies to proud people who are now, by no fault of their own, begging for help and counting on the mercy of people who are geographically more fortunate
- (eventually) clear away the old destryed buildings and rebuild a city that will be more resistant to weather catastrophes in the future
- care for the sick and injured

Remember, everyone from New Orleans-- not just the people who stayed behind-- is homeless and facing an uncertain future. New Orleans is one of the poorest cities in the country, and most of the people who stayed did so because they had no way to leave, and if they could have left, had no place to go. The small number of idiots who are looting TVs and causing violence are FAR outnumbered by people who are scavenging for food, water, and dry clothes, for medicine and first aid supplies, for dry land. They may be poor but they are proud and small sacrifices on all of our parts will add up to a large helping hand for many people.

So please, if you haven't already done so, give what you can plus a little bit more. If you don't have money, donate some water. Donate tools or workgloves or blankets or clothes thatyou won't need.

You can find a list of charitable agencies here and here.

5 comments:

SNG said...

Homeless.
Think about it. Even the well-off residents fo New Orleans. Homeless. Everybody. If you lived there, you'd be homeless too. I can't stand it.

PartnerInCrime said...

I know, it makes me crazy that I'm not anywhere remotely nearby to help out. I really donated way more than what was responsible, given my current state of employment (or um, lack thereof), but I just didn't know what else to do.

alphagal said...

I feel you on that. It feels like there's got to be something we can do. But really, the aid agencies can make better use of any money we'd spend trying to get there to help.
If you believe in heaven, you earn a little more real estate there by being generous when people need you. If you don't believe in heaven, it's still the right thing to do.

Valérie said...

Hey there,
Just donated to the French Red Cross asking them to use this money to help out in New Orleans. It just appalls me to see those images on TV, there's no word to describe such a catastrophy.
I pray that New Orleans will be born again, with Black guys singing and dancing at every single corner, just as magical as I saw it a couple of years ago.

alphagal said...

Thanks, Val- the city can use all the help she can get right now.
I was just thinking this morning how glad I am that you got to visit New Orleans before this happened. It really is a beatuiful city, full of all sorts of people that you don't find anywhere else. And a lot of what makes it so special can be traced back to NO's French Heritage.