Rebuilding the Levees of New Orleans

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Great cities are colorful, diverse, and enduring; the city of New Orleans is a gem. Rich in history, culture and natural resources New Orleans provides immense benefits to the rest or our beautiful country. In response to the documentary “When the Levees Broke” made by the notorious Spike Lee, we are faced with many tragic images; however there is never a question that the people of New Orleans are an enduring and kindred community in desperate of need of loving hands. Sharon Keating writes in her editorial “It's time for a nation to return the favor” Sunday, November 20, 2005 Times-Picayune. A key piece to understand is her take on “Great Cities” “They are made by their place and their people, their beauty and their risk. Water flows around and through most of them. And one of the greatest bodies of water in the land flows through this one; the Mississippi. Even though New Orleans sits below sea level the city has proven it’s worth, with a thriving shipping port, universities, hospitals and a culture overflowing with beauty; American’s must ensure the levees are rebuilt.

What makes our country so beautiful is certainly due in-part to New Orleans culture, the amazing artistic, musical – think of the birth-place of jazz, and the glistening Mississippi. A landscape incredibly gorgeous and people rich in tradition with roots from Europe and elsewhere, provides a dynamic yet firmly rooted people that strongly influences all of America today. Moreover, every person no matter where they may hail from should stop to consider the question “Should we re-build?” At the very moment this enters in consciousness all one needs to truly do is to consider, the what if’s. What if this was my town, my city, my home? The answer is obvious! Of ...

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... Orleans. In Lee’s Documentary we see the death of a city, and a people lost emotionally, economically and in death. One may ascertain that his motivations for brining to light this enormous amount of pain and suffering in his documentary is to enlighten people, those responsible as well as bystanders to ensure that this kind of travesty is properly dealt with should it befall us again Sharon Keating is a life long resident of New Orleans, she has an immense appreciation for the culture, history, natural resources and beauty of the City of New Orleans. Every person has a fondness for home, every city was built to thrive, some have faltered but through the test of time New Orleans has remained steadfast and beautiful and we must all do our part to ensure that this magnificent history permeates our soul and continues to foster the beauty and diversity of New Orleans.

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