Louisianans Hurt By Spill Queue For Free Groceries

[Robbien]

Source: NPR

<snip>

At St. Anthony's Church in Lafitte, La., people started lining up at 4 a.m., even though the doors weren't set to open until 9 a.m. They were there for free $100 grocery gift cards.

"You think we'd be sitting in these lines for five hours for $100 in food if we didn't need it? None of us would be here," Diane Poche says.

Until a month ago, Poche, 61, worked with her husband, who has been a commercial fisherman all his life. But now they can't fish, and Poche says they're forced to rely on the BP claims process for their entire income.

. . .
So, she brought a lawn chair and lined up early. Poche sits with a group of women who all seem to know each other. They're well put together and you could easily imagine them sitting on the sidelines at a kids' soccer game, but instead, they're in the church cafeteria waiting for a handout.



Read more: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127938938

---

The article also tells the story about Rod Thomassie:

Rod Thomassie is holding a piece of paper with the number 77 on it, indicating his place in line. "They're only giving 75 out," he says. "I might get lucky, I don't know."

Thomassie has three kids to feed. He used to bring Gulf seafood home from his job as a deckhand, but because of the spill he hasn't worked in seven weeks.

"To tell a child that you know that you don't have no food. I don't have no work ..." he says. "Last week, they turned around, they cut my lights off, my water. I haven't had any work. Good thing for these people here, and my mom and my dad. They turned around and forked up a little money to help me turn my lights and my water back on."

Thomassie did luck out. He got a grocery card. But he says he really just wants to get back to work. He dropped out of high school to start working on a boat — fishing is all he knows. And the oil spill has taken that away, at least for now.

[Uncle Joe]

1. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Robbien.

[Robbien]

5. There's another heartrending story: The death of a little Cajun no-place

The last of Leeville: Chances grow slim for a wide spot in the road in La.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/17/AR2010061705729_pf.html

The way of life of all these different type characters which make up Louisiana are slowing being killed off by BP.


And another story in a reporter's blog:
http://mrdanzak.com/2010/06/18/the-last-of-leeville/

His wife, who answered the door, needed to be coaxed out of the house, at first refusing to talk because "it's too depressing." Eventually she joined me on the house's unfinished, slanting deck. Her hair was dyed red and looked orange, and she was wearing a ratty pink T-shirt, pajama bottoms and a wrist brace. She looked put-upon, but was very sweet. She talked about her dog Boomer, and how she rescued him from drowning in the bayou. She talked about how the land they own is probably worthless now, how they've already tapped into their hurricane emergency funds. It was the familiar, ceaseless tale of woe, without any promise of a happy end.

She talked. I listened. We said goodbye. As I turned to leave, she said, "Don't let them forget about us."

[Uncle Joe]

8. Such rich, deep and diverse cultures throughout the Gulf, what a waste..

:(

Leeville will be gone.

"To me, Leeville was gone 20 years ago," says Windell Curole, general manager of the South Lafourche Levee District, who says the town was 90 percent marsh in the '60s and is now 90 percent underwater. "When we did not take the action to protect the marshes around Leeville, that was the beginning of the end. The communities in southern Louisiana remain here despite floodwaters because this place produces tremendous amounts of biomass. A 7-year-old can go fish in back and catch enough food to feed his family."

Not now.

[NV Whino]

2. I wonder who is going to hold #77

when the $20 billion runs out.

[Scuba]

3. Do you think Joe Barton will apologize to them?

[SpiralHawk]

4. "Yah, like we republicons are real sorry and stuff. Smirk." - Joe the Barton (R)

"Bwaaa ha ha ha ha. You American Gulf Coast proles can just go pound grits. We republicon homelanders are, um, busy: we have Corporate BP PayolaMaster Ass to Kiss. Sneer. Smirk."

- Joe the Barton (R - Corporate Brown Noser)

[Dappleganger]

6. We care about the little people!

asses!

[Loki]

7. Guess they haven't heard

the Republican mantra, unemployment compensation just makes people lazy and not want to go out and get a job. There are just lots, and lots of jobs out there people. Insert :sarcasm: here. I won't say hate, because my parents taught me better, but I intensely dislike these Republican MF's.

[jwirr]

9. Okay, I am not against this kind of help but are none of these people

eligible for food stamps and welfare now that they have no employment? No one talks about it and I am just wondering if there is something I am not understanding. No child should go hungry. for that matter no one should go hungry.

[mbperrin]

10. It can take up to a month after initial application to receive anything from the state.

Right off their website:

https://webapps.dss.state.la.us/FAApplication/#

After you submit your application

Please allow up to 30 calendar days after submission to process your application.

All applications are subject to an interview. The interview may be by phone or in person based on program requirements.



Do not know about LA, but I know that a couple of my students who were kicked out of their homes and applied here in TX took from 3-6 months to receive the minimum of $75 a month for 6 months for people without children.

[jwirr]

11. That is something President Obama could do put on temporary

workers to expedite food stamp/etc claims as fast as they can.

[Jkid]

14. And even then, they'll try to push them off the application process.

They pay taxes, they deserve the help they need.

[madokie]

12. Whats meant by "at least for now"

the gulf won't be back to where the man will ever be able to go back to work doing the possibly only work he knows how to do. Yea I guess you could say this ole okie is pissed about the gusher and what big oil has done to it.

[Robbien]

13. No official wants to say it is all over folks

And the people living there want to believe that it is not all over. They probably know it in their hearts but don't want to believe it. The concept is too big, too horrendous.

So everyone uses the phrase at least for now. And everyone there is living in some kind of limbo.

Pissed seems to be my constant state these days.

[boppers]

15. Well, it's only temporary.

If they can live off of something else for the next 30 years, they'll be fine.

:sarcasm: