New Orleans East, formally known as a “Black Suburb,” has faced major socioeconomic issues since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Several grocery stores did not return, and two decades later, this neighborhood is still classified as a food desert compared to wealthier areas of the city.
As a Native New Orleanian and current resident of “The East”, I always hear stories of what the area used to be like before Katrina. Residents felt that the neighborhood had been abandoned, while other areas of the city with a majority white population received immediate disaster aid and have almost completely recovered since Katrina.
As a student attending Tulane University, that disparity became impossible for me to ignore — there are several grocery stores just within walking distance from campus, and yet none close to my very own house.
Despite inequities, the New Orleans community has remained strong in advocating for the rebuild, including organizations like “New Orleans East Matters,” which pushes for reinvestment and for the city to address long-standing inequity in food access and economic opportunity…