When The Levees Broke Essay

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Recommended: Effect of disaster on human life

The film “When the Levees Broke” of spike lee is a four part series covering the events that took place before and after the devastation of Katrina on New Orleans and its residents. In August 2005, New Orleans was struck by Hurricane Katrina. People were unprepared for the disaster. As the city was flooding, levees safeguard failed the city, which caused the city to go underwater. In the film, part 1 shows hurricane Katrina and it’s impact. The flooding, rescue efforts and people trying to survive the disaster. Part 2 shows the aftermath with people that were evacuated waiting for help to come to the city. It was a very slow response to help and everyone was just waiting. Part 3 shows how people started to recover. Many hoped to return to their …show more content…

It suggested that hurricane Katrina was not a natural disaster, but a disaster that was caused directly by our own government on both local and federal levels. The film wasn’t easy to watch because it showed how people’s lives were destroyed. I felt both anger and sadness while watching the film. There is no doubt that the people in New Orleans were mistreated during hurricane Katrina, and many of them are still living the consequences today. The film covered people from all races, backgrounds and income levels who spoke about the disaster through their own experiences and how it has personally affected them. There were profanity, racial slurs and many frustrations. There were also prayers and music.There was a lot of blame to go around with Hurricane Katrina, but the people of New Orleans showed strength in the face of the disaster. Throughout the film, people talk about the difficulties that they face after Katrina. It was surprising to see that people waited 4 months and longer in some areas for FEMA trailers. In this regard, the film was an eye opener of the lack of support of our own government in New Orleans. While watching the film, I learned about the spirit of New Orleans. It is such a unique place because of its people and culture.

Lastly, I do concur with most of the opinions presented in the film. Spike lee did an amazing work getting first-hand

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