Louisiana's Native Tribes Were Crushed by Hurricane Ida. They Feel Forgotten.
When John Silver drove back into Dulac, Louisiana, just a few days after Hurricane Ida slammed into the southeastern part of the state, all he saw was a war zone.
Four pine trees had fallen through his house. Downed utility poles crisscrossed the roads. Mobile homes were upside-down. Debris was everywhere, and people were waiting hours in line for gas to power their generators, only to come home empty-handed, according to Silver, a 41-year-old member of the United Houma Nation.
“I’m not very emotional, but driving down, it really affects you,” said Silver, who also serves as the executive director of the Inter-Tribal Council of Louisiana. “People are crying out for help.”
When the Category 4 storm made landfall on the Louisiana coastline Aug. 29, 150 mph winds ransacked Indigenous communities like Silver’s and blew apart the homes of families that were already disproportionately affected by coastal erosion and climate change. But the United Houma Nation and other, smaller tribes in the region lack federal recognition, which cuts them off from a wide range of government benefits and funds. Even though the state sees several tribes in southeastern Louisiana as legitimate, being officially recognized at the national level would open up a more robust “government-to-government” relationship with the feds during times of disaster.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/n7bxjk/hurricane-ida-crushed-native-tribes-united-houma-nation-photos
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I know this is a FEMA thing, but a little help would be appreciated, Deb Haaland---come help your people!