Responding to what he said was the public’s tremendous desire to help, New Orleans Inspector General Ed Quatrevaux said Tuesday that his office is starting a volunteer Citizen’s Reserve force. He said he envisions, among other things, training people to observe public meetings and asking them to send reports to his staff. Volunteers also could […]
Posted inEnvironment
Uneasy living in Lafitte
Last week, The Lens traveled to Lafitte in Jefferson Parish to talk with fishers whose livelihoods may be severely hampered, if not suspended by the BP oil spill. On that day, May 4, the oil hadn’t invaded lakes and estuaries that far in from the Gulf, nor had shrimping, crab-catching and fishing been closed down […]
Posted inLand Use
Rosy view of blight meets Central City's bleak reality
Reginika Tasso snorted at news that the number of vacant houses in New Orleans dropped over the past year by nearly 9,000 to a new post-Katrina low of 50,100. “Really…” the Central City-raised Harvey resident intoned. Did they count the house where I used to stay, asked Tasso, giving an incredulous eye to the reporter […]
Posted inEnvironment
With new app, oil spill can cast its shadow over any city
If it’s a bit difficult getting your brain around how large the BP oil spill is, try this application out for size. Using Google Earth and maps from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Paul Rademacher, an engineering manager for Google, has devised a website where you can have the shape of the spill projected […]
Posted inEnvironment
If you're reading this, you already missed BP job training
Today, the City of New Orleans announced a special oil spill job training session put on by BP in eastern New Orleans that will be held, well, today. On Friday, BP representative Hugh Depland arranged for a training session catering to the Vietnamese community, to be held at the Mary Queen of Vietnam church, at […]
Posted inEnvironment
BP oil cleanup jobs not the stimulus Vietnamese hoped for
The Rev. Vien Nguyen, pastor of the Mary Queen of Vietnam church, waited patiently through hours of talk from BP, Coast Guard, state and federal representatives, and questions from his congregation before finally raising his own question: “Of the fishers BP has hired, are over 50 percent of them Vietnamese?” “I don’t know the answer […]
Posted inEnvironment
Oil's effects on wetlands could be dire
As the oil from BP’s Deepwater Horizon accident seeps into Louisiana’s 48,000 acres of wetlands, it’s officially beginning to endanger the habitat and nesting areas of many species of fish, invertebrates and birds. If the problem worsens, it will create insufferable burdens for area fishers and the markets and restaurants they serve. Not to mention, […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Activists plan Thursday protest against NOPD chief Serpas
New Orleans celebrated the inauguration of Mayor Mitch Landrieu with a jubilant second line last Monday. Smiling wide and swaying from the hips, the new mayor danced through downtown New Orleans. Rebirth Brass Band played. Men in suits and ladies in hats clapped as they trotted along the smooth – for New Orleans – pavement […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Ronal Serpas is Landrieu’s choice; big changes are coming to the NOPD
A few hours ago, Mayor Mitch Landrieu announced that former NOPD Deputy Superintendent and current Nashville police chief Ronal Serpas will lead the NOPD. Landrieu was enthusiastic and effusive in his praise of Serpas, whom he said presented “clear and away the best resume that many people in the country have seen.” “This is the […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Serpas' daughter is connected to suspended NOPD officer
The adult daughter of a finalist for New Orleans police chief shares a house with one of the NOPD officers who was present at a Mid-City bar when off-duty colleagues allegedly beat a group of city transit workers, an event that is the subject of a FBI civil rights investigation.