I'm only up to about p. 104 of Zeitoun so far and there hasn't been much reference to major themes that I felt would make a strong post. I imagine what was mentioned on our cheat sheet will come up later on in the book, but there is one factor that I felt has played a surprisingly low role in the book: race. The mention of the difficulties facing Muslim members of the community is highlighted, but I think in a city where African Americans make up over 67% of the population, their community would be mentioned a bit more.
Looking at the implications of being non-White (diverse) in a post-Katrina New Orleans seems like something that should be given a fair amount of the spotlight. Similar to our own professor's experiences with Piedmont within Oakland, The Nation has an article about Algiers Point, which contains "a small cluster of ornate, immaculately maintained 150-year-old houses" and a primarily White community. Residents here were able to avoid most of the damage from the levees but took it upon themselves "to seal off the area, blocking the roads in and out of the neighborhood" and "stockpiled handguns, assault rifles, shotguns and at least one Uzi and began patrolling the streets in pickup trucks and SUVs." I hope that was where those fan-boats were headed!
I guess I'm wondering if the African American people are going to be making up a chunk of the discussion about race inequities, or will it remain around the White community's perception of Zeitoun and his family. I have to assume that he's going to be doing something crazy if he has a book written about him, but I would just love to see a book that has garnered this much respect touch on such a heated topic. I think it sounds like I'm upset with the author's choice of person to chronicle. Maybe I am. I should probably just keep on reading...
love matty!
Richard
4 years ago
I see what you're saying about the majority of the population of New Orleans being African Americans, and why the author didn't choose to write in one of their perspectives. Maybe Dave Eggers wanted to write in a view that doesn’t get a lot of attention or attention for the wrong things. After the 9/11 terrorists attack, people of Muslims descent, or that just looked Middle Eastern, were all looked at as terrorists. The author probably wanted to show the world that it’s not true and that they also have a good side to them, through the lens of Zeitoun.
ReplyDeleteAbout Algiers Point, I know the residents are trying to protect their neighborhoods, but shouldn’t the law be obeyed by all citizens and not just by lower-class people. They’re trying to preserve a 150 year old community and the rest of the city is trying to preserve their lives. I think saving someone’s lives is more important than saving a property that can be repaired. You can’t bring back a living soul once it’s been swept away by Hurricane Katrina, but you can rebuild a house after it flooded.