The Storm That Won't Blow Over

by Sandy Haksi

On the fourth year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, we are featuring “Trouble the Water,” an Academy Award nominated documentary and one of the best reviewed films of last year about Katrina and the devastation wrought on New Orleans’ most vulnerable. “Trouble the Water” isn't just about poverty, racism and political incompetence; it reflects the cannibalization of government by corporate-friendly policies that have left it hollow, incapable of serving the needs of all citizens. It’s a pay-to-play system (and no, taxes don’t count) where, as one woman in the film puts it, “If you don’t have money, if you don’t have status, you don’t have government.”

At the heart of “Trouble the Water” are two amazing survivors, Kimberly and Scott Roberts, who with no car and no means of exit must fend for themselves. No angels these self-described "street hustlers," they nevertheless defy expectation and turn stereotypes on their head. They bring elderly neighbours and children to their attic for shelter, providing food, comfort and a good dose of humour. While the national media was whipping up looting hysteria and criminalizing anyone taking supplies from stores regardless of the need, the Roberts and their neighbours show a different reality—one characterized by sharing and a sense of good citizenship. Their larger than life nature and hearts are a stark counterpoint to the government’s callous indifference.

“Trouble the Water” illustrates how the poor of New Orleans were left behind a long time ago. Katrina acted to magnify the effects of that desertion, compounding years of neglect with a large-scale natural disaster. It was a horrifyingly visible and visceral example of the failures of radical free market economic doctrines that have embedded themselves within our governments. Yet for some, Katrina was an opportunity not to be missed. As The Corporation showed, and Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine so eloquently details, tragedy is the proverbial blood in the water and quickly the corporate sharks come trolling. Public housing, schools and hospitals can be torn down and replaced with privatized services and magical sounding “free enterprise zones.” The poor are swept aside as an imagined blight on our societies, yet this chronic devaluation of people and community invades our culture and ourselves, leaving us feeling bereft—with the knowledge that something so very important is missing.

“Trouble the Water” personally connects to some of the most notorious events of Katrina. Kimberly Roberts’ grandmother dies in Memorial Hospital along with the many others who weren’t evacuated. Her brother is in jail deserted by guards and prison officials, unaware even that a hurricane is approaching, just left in a cage to watch the waters rise. The film combines Roberts’ eyewitness video with footage from the filmmakers, Tia Lessin and Carl Deal, who produced Fahrenheit 9/11 and Bowling for Columbine with Michael Moore. We witness Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath, spanning two years. Beyond breached levees, “Trouble the Water” covers what happened after the national media left. But it’s not just about hard times and failure; it’s about the hope and buoyancy of the human spirit even, perhaps especially, in the face of calamity.

Rarely does a film manage to hit such emotional and humane notes while being a cold-blooded critique of a government gone monstrously wrong. “Trouble the Water” made us weep and it made us angry. Watch it and then do something.

—Hello Cool World  & The Corporation