Hurricane Katrina reinforced that race colors how we perceive the world and events around us. Our fear of talking about race paired with our flawed goal to be “colorblind” has left us having parallel conversations rather than a collaborative dialogue. Some say racism is anachronistic while others experience its relevance daily. As a country, we have to be willing to delay our defensive reactions when the topic of race comes up and ask ourselves the hard questions of how those left behind, who are predominantly poor and of color, got to be in their present circumstances. It doesn’t just happen by accident. As sociologist Allan Johnson asserts, “A trouble we can’t talk about is a trouble we can’t do anything about.”
