Hurricanes and Fear

During the late summer of 2005, a category 5 hurricane later downgraded to a category 3, made landfall in southeastern Louisiana dumping a deluge of rain accompanied by 120 mph winds, as well as destructive storm surges for nearly two whole days. As hellish as Hurricane Katrina itself must have been to experience, the real horrors caused by the Hurricane were not due to the storm itself, nor the oft-overlooked tornados complemented it, but was caused by the levees that broke due to storm surges flooding the bowl-shaped city of New Orleans with waters from the Gulf of Mexico. (Interestingly enough, at the 2019 Urban Affairs Association conference, Dr. Robert Collins of Dillard University presented his research: The Politics of Urban Water Management: Effects of Recent Elections on Flood Control Policy and Municipal Water Governance in Houston and New Orleans. In his presentation Collins, explained the levees themselves, caused the city of New Orleans to gradually sink more and more beneath sea level. He continued stating that because the Mississippi River naturally floods that area, had flooding been allowed to continue unabated without the levee system, enough sediment would have been left behind after flood waters from the Mississippi recede and overtime, would have prevented city from sinking as it continues to do. Flabbergasted, as it was the first time I heard such analysis, I asked: “So your saying, the levees that were placed to protect the city from flooding, actually contributed to the problem? He responded: “That is correct.” My mind was blown – but I digress.) For days, flood waters rose within the city killing thousands, displacing hundreds of thousands, and causing $108B in damage.

As terrible as the summer of 2005 had been for residents of New Orleans, specifically residents of the lower rungs of the socioeconomic ladder, opportunistic exploitation of residents came soon after. Naomi Klein refers to the predatory inclinations and actions operationalized to capitalize from periods of extremely disorienting events like war and natural disasters as, “disaster capitalism”. Klein suggests, where most humans, even during periods of tumult and danger, instinctively have initial responses to lean-in, help, and alleviate suffering of their fellow human, disaster capitalists view moments of mass vulnerability much differently. Disaster capitalists don’t see such times as opportunities to assist their fellow brethren, but opportunities to gain in finances, power, or both, specifically due to others’ mass suffering and confusion. In New Orleans, following Hurricane Katrina, disaster capitalists of varying sectors of corporate America swooped in seeking to exploit the misery and suffering of New Orleans residents who were, literally, dying in the streets. While many Americans were glued to the TV during that late August marveling at the destruction Katrina wrought and prayed for relief that residents who were too poor to relocate would be saved from their rooftops so that they wouldn’t drown in the toxic stew flooding the streets, or simply sympathized with our southern brothers and sisters’ pain, predatory opportunists along with Louisiana lawmakers were devising plans: to suspend the state’s minimum wage in order to profit from construction contracts, carve up and redevelop the Lower 9^th ward ensuring the poorest residents never had a home in NOLA to return to, and ways to permanently dismantle the public school system – which, incidentally, made up the highest concentration of Black educators in the country. Disaster capitalists in post-Katrina New Orleans accomplished each goal they set to profit from, with the common New Orleanian bearing the cost through their dispossession and oppression.

It took the nation’s costliest hurricane in American history, accompanied by flood waters from the Atlantic Ocean to accomplish in New Orleans what fear of one George Norcross has accomplished in Camden, NJ. Fear of George Norcross, yet only a man, achieved in bleeding Camden for resources and consolidating power what natural disasters in Sri Lanka, war in Iraq, and civil war in Chile during the 70’s did for disaster capitalists, but without all the bloodshed. Without question, it is unlikely for most adults to profess that they fear another human being – especially men were questioned. To that however, the gospel of the great James Baldwin applies: I can’t believe what you [would] say, because I see what you do. Camden’s political and connected class, as well as those in New Jersey government, fear George Norcross. They fear his political connections and perceived power. They fear his seemingly (to them) omnipotent ability to impact their financial futures. They fear what crossing him portends for their potential; whether it’s a lost election as experienced by Jon Corzine’s bid for re-reelection for refusing to cozy-up to Norcross in 2009, or Councilwoman Reyes-Morton’s recent run for mayor rebuking the Norcross machine. Some folks fear a losing titles for which some “dignitaries” derive a sense of validation and privilege. Some fear risking any positive connection to the man (yes, just a man) that can make a phone call and fulfill their professional aspirations. Certainly Camden’s persons in “power” positions fear George Norcross – and have for decades. From South Jersey attorneys who refuse to take cases that even tangentially connected to Norcross, to the leader of the State NAACP, to Camden City Councilpersons, to the newly elected mayor, to the Superintendent of Camden’s schools, to the Governor of New Jersey, the one thing they all have in common is a ubiquitous deference to Norcross as they view him to be the key to their future prosperity.

As hurricanes are strengthened by warm Atlantic waters, the way Katrina was fueled by the heated Gulf of Mexico, George Norcross’ power derives from the legions of people who fear him to the point of paralysis to think and act outside his desires. In turn, Norcross capitalizes on his subjects’ fear by using the same individuals to do his bidding. In a matter of six years, Norcross managed to dismantle a 100 year old city police force, dramatically increase powers and finances to Cooper Hospital where he is Chairman, push through NJEDA legislation that directly give him influence over the direction of over $1B, and redevelop swaths of the city’s Downtown and Waterfront while constricting the availability of affordable housing in Camden resulting in the pushing out of longtime residents. What’s more, Norcross’ direct influence along with complicity of both the past and current district superintendents, is on the cusp of pushing a 110-year-old school system to the brink of collapse recently exemplified in the hushed and needless selling of a District public school to KIPP Cooper Norcross which will predictably hasten planned loss of District students and funding. And the result: more money, power, and fear, continues to flow to Norcross (just a man) increasing his influence among those who fear him as well as those who suffer because of him.               

In every instance, at every turn, Norcross has been, and still is, empowered by others’ fear of him, compounded by their own selfish desire to gain in perceived status despite others’ misery as the consequence. Progress has a price that must be paid by others, apparently. Specifically in Camden, but certainly throughout the state, in keeping Norcross’ hands clean, the man behind the curtain, his minions, many of whom look like residents and may even be Camden residents themselves, are willing to do Norcross’ dirty work so long as they can stay bask in his good graces. (For folks unfamiliar to Camden and Camden politics, you honestly have to see it to believe it. Observing city “leaders” clamoring to be, and revel once in, Norcross’ presence, most onlookers would feel shame for those folks who, themselves, are too desensitized to feel it for themselves.) From our current governor down to local committee persons, the point of commonality is that the fear of Norcross both defines and constrains his pawns’ actions, while disempowering those on the other side of their decisions. This is present day Camden (and present day New Jersey), where one man dictates the actions of the few, and whose consequences are dispensed upon the many; and where he is always the beneficiary. And much like Atlantic hurricanes will continue to form with greater frequency and grow in both size and severity due to the warming ocean temperatures thanks to the world’s failure to tackle global warming, Norcross’ influence on this city and the state will only grow as a result of puppets continuing to choose to fear him, rather than prioritizing Right and in that, reclaiming their own dignity. In the meantime, like NOLA’s residents, we all will suffer because of it.