Commentary: 'Standing in the gap' in New Orleans

A UMNS Commentary By Carolyn Dandridge*

Less than a year ago, the world watched as generations of Gulf Coast residents - the poor, the physically challenged or mentally impaired, infants, families, community leaders, preachers, gang members, immigrants, seekers and good old-fashioned God-fearing people - struggled against a powerful act of nature called Hurricane Katrina.

Recently, nearly three dozen African Americans formed the first all-black United Methodist team to go into New Orleans and Waveland, Miss. The visit was arranged and funded by the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries in collaboration with other churchwide agencies, jurisdictional offices, annual conferences and the denomination's black church initiatives.

Our team spent two and a half days in dialogue with African-American pastors, relief workers and survivors of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Then we left the comfort of the InterContinental New Orleans Hotel on fire and ready to do the work of "agents standing in the gap."

A caravan of four vehicles traveled first to Waveland. The 60-minute drive went through a wonderland of brown grass and broken trees still leaning from the weight of the hurricane devastation. Huge trees had been uprooted, the tips of those roots appearing as if they were reaching out to touch something. They seemed to symbolize the lost and uprooted lives in the wake of the storm. This now vast wilderness continues to reach out for hands to help build, restore and create a community that can be called home again.

It had just rained, and God wanted us to feel a sample of what it must have been like on that day Katrina came ashore. As we drove farther into Waveland, we could see empty foundations that called to mind a cemetery with no headstones. We saw tangled piles of wood that once were homes, waiting for attention from anyone or anything - even a bulldozer.

We began to see those famous white trailers provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Some trailers stood alone, and others were in front of homes where the occupants were trying to rebuild.

In the midst of it all, I could clearly sense God watching and waiting. It seemed as though God was yearning to see who he could use to build new relationships, rekindle spirits of fire, and create in his people clean hearts, willing to stand on tiptoes and ready to labor in the vineyards again.

Devastation at Gulfside
The journey carried us to Gulfside Assembly - or what used to be Gulfside, one of the United Methodist Church's historic retreat and assembly centers. We saw more of the same kind of destruction we had already observed, yet it was worse than before because many of the team members remembered what Gulfside used to look like.

What was left of the beachside was full of debris and displaced signs. The sand that once was white was now brown, and the only thing left of the pier were the poles that once supported the boardwalk. As we reached our worksite, mosquitoes swarmed the vehicles.

We left Gulfside speechless, emotionally charged, and puzzled that almost a year later, after so much money had been spent, so little was visibly accomplished in this area.

By the time the team returned to New Orleans, I thought I was ready to view the Lower Ninth Ward. We were going to see Brooks United Methodist Church, where members of our group would be doing cleanup work, and then drive by one of the Louisiana Conference's storm recovery centers, where we would help with administrative tasks.

Most of the roads were clear for passage. I have to admit I had no idea what I was going to find in this most devastated area of New Orleans. I was not prepared for what I observed.

Most of the homes we saw were brick. If a home's structure was laid with bricks, it was still standing. If a home was made of wood or had shingles, it was gone, caved in or just rearranged in another location. Marks clearly highlighted the water levels that stood for days in some homes after the city's levees broke. The number of boats that were washed into the Ninth Ward from the more affluent areas of New Orleans was almost comical. There were cars in houses, under houses and smashed beyond recognition.

Spiritual fix needed
What I saw in New Orleans was not about material things. They come and go. I saw God destroying something old so the people can build something new. I talked with pastors, social workers, relief administrators and storm victims, many of whom were trying to rebuild without proper knowledge of the system.

I heard about contractors stealing from survivors and trying to make a dollar by performing unsafe renovations. Many homes, unless they are elevated by an Aug. 29 deadline, face possible seizure by the city under eminent domain. The victims left in those storm areas are searching through rules, regulations and red tape and are running on empty.

They need a great spiritual fix. They need someone to tell their story.

They also want to see black people that look like them down in the trenches getting their hands dirty. They want to see minority-owned contractors gutting homes in the not-so- fashionable space suits and masks. They want to feel the victory of re-establishing their communities, reuniting with lost family members, and overcoming the obstacles in front of them.

Storm victims are calling on senators, civil liberties unions, the NAACP, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, commentators Tavis Smiley, Michael Bason and Tom Joyner, 100 Black Women and Men groups, black fraternities and sororities, black leaders, the Supreme Court and anyone ready to lend a helping hand to bring light to the darkness in New Orleans a year after Katrina and Rita.

We need these citizens to be an active part of society again. They need people marching beside them in the fight to recover their lives despite racism, classism, ignorance, broken families and lost loved ones. There is a war going on in New Orleans as this effort continues.

The team members were from the United Methodist Boards of Global Ministries, Discipleship, Higher Education and Ministry, as well as United Methodist Communications, the Commission on Religion and Race, the Southeastern Jurisdiction Office, Strengthening the Black Church for the 21st Century, and the North Carolina, California-Pacific and the North Georgia annual conferences.

We all went to work and to make a difference. We all left searching, praying, praising the mysterious works of the Almighty Father, and asking for directions.

We can't rest until all of the people of the Gulf Coast see other teams that look like them. We are calling all black Americans, Africans and those from the African Diaspora to take your time, talents, and tactics and use them to help save the people of the Gulf Coast region. It affects us because next time it could be your city, state or region.

*Dandridge is communications project coordinator for the United Methodist Board of Discipleship.