August 20, 2016
"Is that really what you think of us?"
It appears there was one thing on the mind of President Barack Obama as he surveyed the devastation wrought in Louisiana by floodwaters that have forced thousands from their homes.
It was not personally coming to reassure citizens that the federal government cared about their suffering. In fact, it was not until after he was repeatedly badgered by Louisiana citizens and preceded to Louisiana by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump that Obama announced he would visit the state after the end of his vacation at Martha’s Vineyard.
On Tuesday, as the full extent of the destruction and misery of the state was just becoming clear, the Obama administration reached out to the state with the heavy hand of its bureaucracy to warn against racial discrimination.
In 16 pages of rules and regulations, the Justice Department warned Louisiana recipients of federal disaster assistance against “unlawful discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin (including limited English proficiency).”
The edit was sent to citizens as they desperately tried to save belongings or coped with life in emergency shelters to “highlight the importance of complying with non-discrimination requirements of civil rights statutes, addressing the needs of the whole community, and ensuring equal opportunity to access recovery efforts.”
Louisiana resident Rod Dreher took to the American Conservative this week to let Washington know just how it felt for Louisiana residents to want relief and get the rule book thrown at them.
No comments:
Post a Comment