Home > Katrina Survivors Tell Congress Levees Were Blown On Purpose

Katrina Survivors Tell Congress Levees Were Blown On Purpose

by Open-Publishing - Tuesday 13 December 2005
18 comments

Edito Catastrophes USA

Victim’s anger: Dyan French, who stayed in New Orleans during the hurricane and its aftermath, gives evidence to the congressional committee. She claimed the city’s levees were purposely bombed.

By Eunice Moscoso, Washington
December 8, 2005

VICTIMS of hurricane Katrina have told a US congressional bipartisan select committee that they were held at gunpoint, treated like criminals and left to sleep next to dead bodies.

They said the Government at all levels failed to protect them as they tried to escape floodwaters.

In an emotional and sometimes contentious hearing, most witnesses said they believed racism played a key part in the aftermath of the disaster and that they were still suffering without basic services and feared that promised help and housing would never arrive.

Patricia Thompson, a New Orleans resident, told a harrowing tale of trying to escape floodwaters with her family only to be neglected and mistreated by police.

"We slept next to dead bodies. We slept on streets ... next to human faeces and urine," she said. "The way we were treated by police was demoralising and inhuman. They made everybody lie on the ground with their hands on their heads, even babies."

Leah Hodges, said with tears in her eyes that people were allowed to die as New Orleans was turned into a "mass grave." She called the response an "ethnic cleansing" and an "act of genocide" and said police screamed racial slurs at family members who were trying to get help for sick neighbours.

The hearing was prompted in part by a request from Democrat congresswoman Cynthia McKinney for a hearing on "African-American voices" related to hurricane Katrina.

She said a history of racism in the region should not be ignored, including reported incidents of racial profiling and racist comments by police in Jefferson Parish.

One heated exchange during the hearing came between Republican congressman Christopher Shays and Dyan French, a New Orleans resident who stayed in the city throughout the hurricane and its aftermath.

Congressman Shays said he did not believe Ms French’s claim that the levees in the city had been bombed on purpose and asked her if she could see the levees from her home. She took offence at the question.

http://www.theage.com.au/news/world...

Forum posts

  • Of course they won’t admit it. Do you expect criminals to admit there crimes. This to will be burried just like the lies of 911.

  • It’s quite believable that the levees were blown to protect the more ’elite’ side of town. But what’s needed is witnesses, pictures, tapes, evidence. Not just claims.

    Failing that, this will be buried along with the controlled demolitions of 911.

  • It’s hard to argue with someone who looks as judicious, sober, level-headed, and reasonable as Dyan French does in that photo.

    • It’s hard to argue with someone who looks as judicious, sober, level-headed, and reasonable as Dyan French does in that photo."

      I agree. If only she had Bush’s head in those hands. Now that would be a lot more understandable considering what she must have been through.

    • a mind is a terrible thing to lose

  • what about the story about the x-navey diverwho was hired to dive at the levy and suggest ways to repair. whrn diving he noticed the burn marks under water on the levy and brought up a piece with the marks on it . he was rebucked by his supervisor saying he wasn’t there to find the cause of the levy breaking but to suggest repair solutions. on his next dive he hid a piece of this evedence in his dive suite and then sent it to a rwtired navy officer involved in explosives as well andtested it in a privete lab producing positive (100%) results confirming underwater explosion

    • I had not heard of this before... Can someone post additional info or URLs, please.

    • See, now THAT’S the kind of evidence needed to bring this to the forefront.

      They blew the levees to wipe out the poor side of town so they could re-build a Las vegas.

      Those houses will be condemned, the owners won’t even know of the condemnations and will be held responsible for the demolition costs - they will not pay because they won’y be informed - the local govt will take the land and sell at a fraction of the price to a deveolper who will grab it all up and Viola! New Las Vegas!

      So sayeth the soothsayer

    • If I remember correctly, it was a headline story on the Weekly World News about a month ago. I think the Bat Boy was involved.

  • A large Hurricane is coming…you live below sea level…common sense says what?

    • some of the poorer residents had no SUV’s to leave town in. and, i believe some were not allowed to leave. they were directed to the stadium.

    • only a fascist would bring up common sense at a time like this

  • As a news reporter, on Friday Sept 9th, I contacted several radio stations in the
    San Francisco Bay Area to query whoever answered the phone as to what exactly
    the majority of people were thinking and saying about the catastrophe in New Orleans.

    Well, this is what I found out: hundreds of people in the Bay area called the radio
    stations at KCBS and also at KGO, to express their deep concern, their anger and
    frustration, at what they believed was genocide.

    Also, the following day, Sept 10th (a Saturday), I called the White House and
    spoke with Andy Card. Here is my report of that event:

    "This time, instead of a woman answering and saying that she is answering for Andy Card,
    Chief of Staff, a man answers and says "Karl Rove’s office."

    I said, "Hi Andy" (The fact tht I have gone on various website’s and listened to audios of
    various White House personnel and paid attention to their voices finally paid off!)

    He said, "Who is this?"

    I said, "My name is Carol Sterritt. I am a reporter for the Coastal Post a newspaper
    out of Marin County CA, north of San Francisco.’ I paused. "I have written articles
    that have widespread attention on the matter of the Stolen Election."

    He said, "Yes?"

    "My editor has assigned me the task of asking the White House if anyone there has
    ever heard of the 1948 Berlin AirLift wherein the Air Force dropped tons of supplies
    and saved the beleagured city of Berlin" etc.

    He said, "The answer to that is that right now we have have 125 tons of materials

    and supplies sitting at the New Orleans airport waiting for distribution. That those
    supplies have been flown in or brought in by trucks."

    "But my point is that if those supplies had been assembled and airdropped earlier this week..."

    He reiterrated: "We now have 125 tons of supplies sitting and waiting to be distributed
    at the central airport in New Orleans."

    Pause "You would do well to call the office of emergency affairs at FEMA and Homeland Security."

    Then he said, polite as all get out, "I am sorry but I have to go, I am being called into
    an emergency meeting."

    Carol Dagg Sterritt, Staff Reporter, The Coastal Post

  • ms. French is basically correct in saying they treated like criminals. In my opinion, It’s more like they were treated like animals, and futhermore, useless animals to be used for propaganda purposes, then cast aside or eliminated. MC.

    • I think that a lot of people are forgetting that everyone was told to leave days before the hurricane ever hit. If they had no way out the police and fire dept. would help them. They chose to stay. Most because they didn’t believe the hurricane was so dangerous.They also put others lives at risk because they didn’t leave. Should they all be charged with reckless endangerment? They all had a choice. Now they are all crying racism. It was done because we are Black. When are people, and I mean all people, Black, White, Hispanic, or any other going to start taking responsibility for their actions. Everyone is all to eager to blame someone else for what they do.Be it spilling hot coffe in you lap while driving and blaming the fast food company, to not leaving when a diaster is coming.

    • That might make sense...except that the levies (or an about 300 yard section) didn’t "fail" until the hurricane passed. Why people chose to stay? Other than not having a way out since the pigs and fire dept. were trying to leave town too, another reason would possibly be because they knew thier scheming government was going to make an attempt at stealing their land.