As She Rises
The Bayou
Episode Summary
In New Orleans, there is a time before the storm, and a time after. How does one keep up with change in a state losing a football field’s worth of land every hour and a half? On a street where a neighbor’s porch is built 12 feet off the ground? Welcome to As She Rises. In this episode, we visit the land currently known as Louisiana. Poet Jerika Marchan reads from her collection “SWOLE,” recounts living through Hurricane Katrina, and tells us why she'll stay in Louisiana as long as it will let her. Colette Pichon Battle, founder and executive director of the Gulf Coast Center for Law and Policy, advocates for structural shifts towards ecological equity and climate justice in communities of color on the frontline of climate change.
Episode Notes
In New Orleans, there is a time before the storm, and a time after. How does one keep up with change in a state losing a football field’s worth of land every hour and a half? On a street where a neighbor’s porch is built 12 feet off the ground?
Take Action:
- The Gulf Coast Center for Law and Policy advances structural shifts toward ecological equity and climate justice in Gulf South communities of color on the frontline of climate change. You can donate to or volunteer with the GCCLP and Colette’s work at GCCLP.org.
- Join the efforts of the Gulf South for a Green New Deal at GulfSouth2GND.org. Find regional movements and events at GulfSouth4GND.org/regional-actions.
- Support Jerika’s poetry and book, “Swole,” at FuturePoem.com.
- Join efforts to put pressure on world leaders, at COP26 and beyond:
- Support SheChangesClimate, which is trying to get more women in top-level leadership at COP26 and other delegations around the world.
- Check out Greenpeace’s campaign: you can get involved with a local volunteer group in the UK or sign the Greenpeace petition.
- Donate to local aid groups organizing for Hurricane Ida and COVID-19 relief for the city of New Orleans and surrounding communities:
- Imagine Water Works advocates for "living with water" and works at the intersections of reducing risk from flooding, pollution, and natural hazards, prioritizing those who are systemically forgotten or pushed to the margins.
- Our Voice Nuestra Voz (#BlackAndBrownGetDown Community Defense Fund) organizes parents to expand quality educational access for students in New Orleans.
- House of Tulip is a community land trust creating housing solutions for trans and gender non conforming people in Louisiana:
- Bvlbancha Collective is an Indigenous mutual aid collective working in and for Bvlbancha, the original Chahta name for New Orleans.
- New Orleans Musicians' Clinic provides comprehensive medical care and social services to local musicians, performing artists, cultural workers, and tradition bearers.
- United Houma Nation Relief supports the efforts and general daily operations of the United Houma Nation.
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