A Southern US Anarchist Statement on the Gulf Coast Disaster

The State leaves 100,000 to drown like rats, while people everywhere open their hearts and homes

Solidarity with the victims of the Gulf Coast disaster!
Solidarity with those who remain in precarious positions months after the tsunami disaster!
Solidarity with those all across the globe who have lost family or remain in refugee camps due to the disasters which the ruling class magnifies or the wars which it engineers!

A Southern US Anarchist Statement on the Gulf Coast Disaster

The State leaves 100,000 to drown like rats, while people everywhere open their hearts and homes

As many as 20,000 people have been abandoned in the New Orleans Convention Center with no resources and no anticipated relief. Meanwhile, National Guard units with submachine guns and body armor prevent people from taking necessary food from places where it would otherwise go to waste, and call it "urban warfare." Under capitalism, there is no such thing as "natural" disasters; horrible and unavoidable events are exacerbated by the callous acts of the ruling class. Examples include: the Irish potato famine of the 19th century, and the Somalian of the 20th, where food was taken by imperialist countries, like Britain and the US, instead of being used to save the starving population; the more recent hurricane disasters in Haiti shortly after the U.S. ousted the only government which might have marshaled any aid to the Haitian people and replaced it with a military junta; the tsunami disaster, which was aggravated by years of IMF and World Bank domination in the region that resulted in severe underdevelopment; and the present situation in the Gulf Coast.

How did the ruling class contribute to this disaster? Having full knowledge that this would be a devistating hurricane season, they chose to sink the 79 million dollars designated to repair the antiquated levee system into the Iraq quagmire. Furthermore, although they knew ahead of time that the hurricane would be at least a category 4 hurricane, and that the levee system could withstand no more than a category 3, the ruling class did not invest any serious resources into evacuating the city of New Orleans and the surrounding area as the storm approached (and rich politicians have the gall to accuse working-class people of carelessly staying in the city)! As we mentioned, their first priority is to mobilize heavily-armed National Guard units who will shoot people that are merely trying to find food, rather than to bring the necessary aid to the estimated 20,000 starving people at the Convention Center who will die if nothing is done (not to mention other people in similar situations throughout the city). The politicians continue lying in a desparate attempt to save their careers, making it increasingly clear that they have no concern for the lives of the people they've abandoned.

In contrast, thousands of people have opened their homes to survivors in an amazing gesture of solidarity and compassion. Despite the State's citation of its ability to channel aid in times of need as a justification for its existance, it has again demonstrated how the constraints of capitalism interfere with its ability to provide any sort of assistance. The incredible display of mutual aid on the part of the people gives further support for the anarchist argument that people can indeed develop a stateless society based on the adage "from each according to ability, to each according to necessity." We hope to see that society become a reality someday, but for now we declare our solidarity with those who have been abandoned, and, in hopes that others will join us, we demand the following:

That the government immediately commandeer the necessary resources, such as transportation and shelter, in order to evacuate people from the city and ensure that they have adequate accomodations until it is possible to return to their homes or move on
An immediate end to national guard and police units attacking those looking for food
Immediate distribution of ALL necessary items (water, food, clothing, etc.) during the process of evacuation
The immediate resignation/dismissal and punishment of all decision-makers who neglected the responsibility of repairing the levees or coordinating evacuations from the city while it was possible, or who are responsible for National Guard and police units attacking those who are "stealing" necessary items
No conviction for any who were arrested while "stealing" food or any other necessity
An end to the price-gouging of oil which is affecting working-class people across the country, by price fixing if necessary
Adequate aid to all people wishing to rebuild homes lost due to the negligence of capitalist politicians

Solidarity with the victims of the Gulf Coast disaster! Solidarity with those who remain in precarious positions months after the tsunami disaster! Solidarity with those all across the globe who have lost family or remain in refugee camps due to the disasters which the ruling class magnifies or the wars which it engineers!

The Capital Terminus Collective
(Atlanta, GA)

[To endorse this statement, e-mail capitalterminus (at) gmail (dot) com; visit www.anarkismo.net for an updated list of endorsers]