The case for restorative justice
29th August 2022 · 0 Comments
As we commemorate and reflect on the first anniversary of Hurricane Ida on August 29, we have to think that the Category 4 hurricane was an omen, a warning that lessons must be learned about how to best survive and overcome the devastating effects of future storms.
Coming as it did on the 16th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Ida reminds us that injustices follow natural disasters in the form of manufactured disasters; that we must course-correct for the damages man causes after the hurricane.
Unnatural disasters like higher insurance rates, extended electricity outages, price-gouging at gas pumps and food stores, and high and unfair prices charged by roofers, contractors, repair people, funeral homes, and hospitals scream out for justice and mercy.
We need justice to follow the hurricane. Lower prices for goods and commodities in the affected areas will go a long way toward helping residents rebound.
Some good-hearted people and organizations come to the aid of their fellow human beings. They donate money, prepare and distribute food, and provide temporary shelter and clothing. They are there almost immediately after a natural disaster. God Bless them!
But after the emergency needs subside, hurricane survivors face hard choices and often experience a poor quality of life for long periods. People with higher incomes can rebuild and resume their everyday lives quickly.
But for the least of these? No. The struggle is real. FEMA does what it can, but thanks to Republicans changing the Stafford Act, in the days after Katrina, the federal government no longer has to make a person “whole” after a natural disaster.
So low-income homeowners and seniors on a fixed income without homeowners and flood insurance are screwed and left twisting in the wind. The roof doesn’t get repaired, and the blue tarp allows rainwater to seep into the house, creating a dangerous mold situation. The car doesn’t get repaired, so citizens are reduced to begging family and friends for rides or catching buses.
Fresh produce? Too expensive. Paper (money) must be stacked to pay for repairs. If you make $31,000 a year, you’re making 50 percent less than the experts say a single person must earn –$60,000 – to have a decent quality of life in Louisiana. Never mind being about to rebound from a natural disaster.
Low-wage jobs in a state where legislators refuse to raise wages above the federal minimum of $7.25 may be why many people can’t afford to evacuate during a disaster, can’t afford homeowners or flood insurance, and can’t afford to repair property damage.
Low wages caused a shortage of garbage collectors. Garbage sat on the streets, stinking for days. Entergy’s transmission lines and polls left residents in the dark for days.
Unless proactive steps are taken to address the aftermath of natural disasters, Louisianans will be locked in an endless loop of disrepair.
This month, the NOAA (National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration) updated its 2022 Hurricane Season outlook, which covers the entire six-month hurricane season that ends on November 30. The NOAA assessment calls for 14-20 named storms (winds of 39 mph or greater), of which 6-10 could become hurricanes (winds of 74 mph or greater). Of those, 3-5 could become major hurricanes (winds of 111 mph or greater). NOAA provides these ranges with 70 percent confidence.
So, besides being prepared to ride out the storm or evacuate, what else can be done to ensure that Louisianans can rebound and resume their everyday lives?
Our elected officials can step up and secure justice for those they represent. They can legislate caps on insurance premiums, negotiate fair prices for state supplemental homeowners insurance, and make laws limiting interest rates and deductibles for flood and car insurance.
State legislators and the governor can also insist on lower gas prices, so residents can save money for evacuation and buy enough gas to leave or power generators.
How many oil and gas refineries create their products in Louisiana?
Louisiana accounts for about nine percent of U.S. marketed natural gas production and holds about eight percent of the nation’s natural gas reserves. Louisiana’s 14 oil refineries account for nearly one-fifth of the nation’s refining capacity and can process about 3.2 million barrels per day.
So why are gas prices as high as in places without a vast oil and gas industry?
In New Orleans, the City Council can negotiate fairer utility rates. Skyrocketing electricity, sewerage, and water bills burden low- and moderate-income earners. When a natural disaster hits, utility companies pass on repair costs to ratepayers.
After Hurricane Ida, Entergy said it had to replace 300 transmission poles and lines, and it would pass on the repair costs to its customers. That is the epitome of injustice.
If we’re being cynical, we would say those campaign contributions are why our lawmakers seem impotent in regulating industries and protecting consumers from unfair price-gouging.
Maybe that’s not the case. But demanding justice and fairness shouldn’t just fall on citizens’ shoulders. Lawmakers shouldn’t have to be picketed against to do the right thing. What happened to “for the people, by the people, and of the people?” Isn’t government supposed to be “One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all?”
Suppose elected officials don’t deliver justice to their constituents. In that case, voters may have to secure justice by selecting people who will do the right thing, especially taking proactive steps to help those they represent survive more frequent natural disasters and global warming.
This article originally published in the August 29, 2022 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
