Political Leadership, Cultural Ethics and Recovery: Louisiana Post-Katrina

Abstract

The history of Louisiana colorful politics and corruption in government is legendary and, in Louisiana, something celebrated, or at least warmly embraced, as part of the cultural richness of the State. An oft-repeated phrase here is that Louisiana is no more corrupt than any place else, it’s just that Louisianians are more proud of it. Such sentiments permeate the discussion of federal and private financial assistance to the State in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and serves as an explanation regarding the lack of effective leadership and misuse of funds thus far distributed. Yet beyond concern for the loss of dollars in themselves are the very real and tragic consequences for the citizens who were most affected by hurricane Katrina, who have received but a trickle of the flood of money that poured into the State following the event. For these people, who remain without adequate shelter, resources, educational opportunities, healthcare, and separated from their support networks, the recovery progress remains little changed over the last 4 years. An overview of the political and ethical culture of Louisiana and reflections on how that contributed to and exacerbated administrative failure in the wake of Katrina is presented here.