Come hell or high water : Hurricane Katrina and the color of disaster / Michael Eric Dyson.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 213-244) and index.

Preface: Pompeii and 8/29 -- Unnatural disasters: race and poverty -- Does George W. Bush care about black people? -- The politics of disaster -- Hurricane and hesitation -- Levees and lies -- Follow the leader? -- Guns and butter (or FEMA-nizing disaster) -- Capitalizing on disaster -- Frames of reference: class, caste, culture, and cameras -- Supernatural disasters?: theodicy and prophetic faith -- Afterword: transforming the Jericho road.

Does George W. Bush care about black people? Does the rest of America? When Hurricane Katrina tore through New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, hundreds of thousands were left behind to suffer the ravages of destruction, disease, and even death. The majority of these people were black; nearly all were poor. The federal government's slow response is by now notorious. Yet despite the cries of outrage that have mounted since the levees broke, we have failed to confront the disaster's true lesson: to be poor, or black, in today's ownership society, is to be left behind. Combining interviews with survivors with his deep knowledge of black migrations and government policy over decades, Dyson provides the historical context that has been missing from public conversation. He explores the legacy of black suffering in America since slavery, including the ways that black people are framed in the national consciousness even today.--From publisher description.