Where to Now?

This blog is a long time in coming because it's so personal. My sister, Dr. Barbara Guillory Thompson, was trapped for seven days by the flooding in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. She does not consider herself to be a victim, evacuee (because she's a U.S. citizen), or displaced. The "Fates" are her home and contents are destroyed and the insurance has paid about one-third its worth. She's now deciding "where to now."

Should she remain in Utah and be close to me, relocate to Mississippi where several of her long-time friends are located, or move back to New Orleans and rebuild? I think New Orleans is out. But the other two are still in the running. While here, she leaves a trail of unforgettable encounters with the dentist, drug store personnel, and people in the neighborhood. The question I'm commonly asked is "How did you get such a wonderful sister?"

Putting aside the facts that she was the first Black woman at LSU Baton Rouge (when Blacks were not so welcomed), among the first Black students who successfully sued to get into Tulane University (when Blacks were so welcomed as now and still managed to get a Ph.D. there), and taught at Dillard University for 40 years, I think she feels blessed to be alive and highly functional.

She was very active in New Orleans on city boards, nursing homes, promoting the careers of her many, many, former students. So what's the point I'm making? Empowerment is about contributing to the lives of others as well as one's self. As a result, there is little time left to complain about what we don't have. Notwithstanding the fact that many, many people left with just the clothes on their backs, empowerment is looking at our circumstances and seeking ways to better ourselves.

If there is any country on this planet where this mind-set and reality are not illusions, it is the U.S. Now I'm not one of these "pull yourself up by your boot straps" people, but I do know you can change your life by changing your mind-set. The mind-set I'm speaking of is one of "can do." Ultimately, FEMA and state supported programs will end, no matter what promises are made by whom! That's reality and one my sister realized from the beginning.

Her attitude is not surprising, since her entire life was about teaching empowerment. Holding students accountable for their responsibilities was an essential life lesson, in addition to a homework assignment. Breaking barriers in those times was not a pastime, but a dedicated effort to create change that many students enjoy today, and I hope appreciate. As a great Black American once said, "Today's privileges are built on the shoulders of giants." This quote is particularly true during Black History Month. (February)

Having grown up in New Orleans in the Lafitte Housing Projects, I know the stuff the people of New Orleans are made of. I humbly acknowledge their losses. And I also know "They, like my sister, will rise again.!" Those who are scattered around the U.S., there is value and opportunity wherever you find yourself. I encourage all of us to reach out to one another and begin to look for the opportunities this tragic event has provided.

If you haven't asked yet, I suggest you do so at this time, "Where to now?"