Katrina Pain Index 2012: 7 Years After

by Bill Quigley and Davida Finger

Published by Portside
August 24, 2012

[Bill and Davida teach at Loyola University New Orleans
College of Law.  A version of this article with complete
sources is available.  The authors give special thanks to
Allison Plyer of the Greater New Orleans Community Data
Center.  You can reach Bill at [log in to unmask] ]

1 Rank of New Orleans in fastest growing US cities between
2010 and 2011. Source: Census Bureau.

1 Rank of New Orleans, Louisiana in world prison rate.
Louisiana imprisons more of its people, per head, than any
of the other 50 states. Louisiana rate is five times higher
than Iran, 13 times higher than China and 20 times Germany.
In Louisiana, one in 86 adults is in prison. In New Orleans,
one in 14 black men is behind bars. In New Orleans, one of
every seven black men is in prison, on parole or on
probation. Source: Times-Picayune.

2 Rank of New Orleans in rate of homelessness among US
cities. Source: 2012 Report of National Alliance to End
Homelessness.

2 Rank of New Orleans in highest income inequality for
cities of over 10,000 Source: Census.

3 Days a week the New Orleans daily paper, the Times-
Picayune, will start publishing and delivering the paper
this fall and switch to internet only on other days. (See 44
below). Source: The Times-Picayune.

10 Rate that New Orleans murders occur compared to US
average. According to FBI reports, the national average is 5
murders per 100,000. The Louisiana average is 12 per
100,000. The New Orleans reported 175 murders last year or
50 murders per 100,000 residents. Source: WWL TV.

13 Rank of New Orleans in FBI overall crime rate rankings.
Source: Congressional Quarterly.

15 Number of police officer-involved shootings in New
Orleans so far in 2012. In all of 2011 there were 16.
Source: Independent Police Monitor.

21 Percent of all residential addresses in New Orleans that
are abandoned or blighted. There were 35,700 abandoned or
blighted homes and empty lots in New Orleans (21% of all
residential addresses), a reduction from 43,755 in 2010
(when it was 34% of all addresses). Compare to Detroit
(24%), Cleveland (19%), and Baltimore (14%). Source: Greater
New Orleans Community Data Center (GNOCDC).

27 Percent of people in New Orleans live in poverty. The
national rate is 15%. Among African American families the
rate is 30% and for white families it is 8%. Source:
Corporation for Enterprise Development (CEFD) and Greater
New Orleans Community Data Center (GNOCDC) Assets &
Opportunity Profile: New Orleans (August 2012).

33 Percent of low income mothers in New Orleans study who
were still suffering Post Traumatic Stress symptoms five
years after Katrina. Source: Princeton University Study.

34 Bus routes in New Orleans now. There were 89 before
Katrina. Source: RTA data.

37 Percent of New Orleans families that are "asset poor" or
lack enough assets to survive for three months without
income. The rate is 50% for black households, 40% for Latino
household, 24% for Asian household and 22% for white
households. Source: Corporation for Enterprise Development
(CEFD) and Greater New Orleans Community Data Center
(GNOCDC) Assets & Opportunity Profile: New Orleans (August
2012

40 Percent of poor adults in New Orleans region that work.
One quarter of these people work full-time and still remain
poor. Source: GNOCDC.

42 Percent of the children in New Orleans who live in
poverty. The rate for black children is 65 percent compared
to less than 1 percent for whites. Source: Census.

44 Rank of Louisiana among the 50 states in broadband
internet access. New Orleans has 40 to 60 percent access.
Source: The Lens.

60 Percent of New Orleans which is African American. Before
Katrina the number was 67. Source: GNOCDC.

60 Percent of renters in New Orleans are paying more than 30
percent of their income on rent and utilities, up from 51
percent in 2004. Source: GNOCDC.

68 Percent of public school children in New Orleans who
attend schools that pass state standards. In 2003-2004 it
was 28 percent. Source: GNOCDC.

75 Percent of public school students in New Orleans who are
enrolled in charter schools. Source: Wall Street Journal.
This is the highest percentage in the US by far, with
District of Columbia coming in second at 39 percent.
Sources: Wall Street Journal and National Alliance for
Public Charter Schools.

76 Number of homes rebuilt by Make It Right Foundation.
Source: New York Times.

123,934 Fewer people in New Orleans now than in 2000. The
Census reported the 2011 population of New Orleans source as
360,740. The 2000 population was 484,674. Source: Census.

===

[Bill Quigley is Associate Director of the Center for
Constitutional Rights and a law professor at Loyola
University New Orleans.  He is a Katrina survivor and has
been active in human rights in Haiti for years. He
volunteers with the Institute for Justice and Democracy in
Haiti (IJDH) and the Bureau de Avocats Internationaux (BAI)
in Port au Prince. Contact Bill at [log in to unmask]

Davida Finger is a social justice lawyer and clinical
professor at Loyola University New Orleans.]

[Portside thanks Bill Quigley for sharing this with Portside
and our readers.]

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