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Latino Migrant Labor Strife and Solidarity in Post-Katrina New Orleans, 2005-2007

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, lapses in federal policy-making and a lack of state level enforcement paved the way for employer exploitation of predominantly Latino migrant workers, transforming working-class Latino newcomers into the newest class of storm victims in post-Katrina New Orleans. In essence, a "rebuild above all else" recovery scenario took hold between 2005-2007 in which immediate reconstruction of the city took priority over the participation of local, African-American workers and the protection of immigrant worker rights. Despite their disadvantaged position, however, migrant workers did not remain passive victims to injustice but actively organized against employer abuse and intimidation by law enforcement and immigration officials. Latino worker activists and their allies sternly rejected the “rebuild above all else” recovery model championed by local, state and federal government policies and sought to carve out an alternative rebuilding model that respected immigrant labor rights.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:uno.edu/oai:scholarworks.uno.edu:td-1930
Date15 May 2009
CreatorsGorman, Leo Braselton
PublisherScholarWorks@UNO
Source SetsUniversity of New Orleans
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
SourceUniversity of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

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