Health Hazards : A Structural Model Of Health Behavior

One of the most unique things about New Orleans particularly in the 18th and 19th centuries where this image is derived from was race and racism. People were excluded or included, considered inferior or superior based on the race they belonged to. To this end, Indians, and African Americans were classified on the lower end of the race totem pole while whites were seen as superior. Furthermore, one’s stance in society or occupation was determined by their race. The whites were majorly businessmen and land owners presiding over big farms that they owned. The blacks and the Indians were mostly peasants ‘owned’ by the white people and forced to work on the farms of the white people against their will owing to the fact that they were imported from their original residences as slaves (Appleby, Eileen and Neva 18). It is, therefore, clear that race and racism played a significant role in helping define New Orleans as we know it today. Bringing racism to the fore provides a platform upon which it can be alleviated to help

The rich people from the city were all engaged in slave trade. The ultimate effect of the widespread slavery was that many families were psychologically tortured or killed physically leading to the braking of such families. After the abolishment of slavery, people started looking for their loved ones who had been sold in the New Orleans market. Therefore, it is difficult to forget the history of the city with such significant issues having happened extensively there. The picture tries to show people that slavery and business existed even during the colonial era. In this case, slave trade was the main business being undertaken during this time. Evidence from historical literature shows that ships were sold although they would be filled with slaves.

New Orleans was originally founded on high ground overlooking the Mississippi River, above sea level. Also surrounded by Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Borgne, New Orleans was susceptible to hurricanes that would come up the coast into the Gulf. Originally New Orleans was naturally protected by “coastal swamps that helped absorb the energy of storm surges before they reached dry land.” (Stillman 228) At this point Americans were more concerned with the floods that happened annually from the Mississippi River. In the early days, settlers built a mile long levee to block overflows from the mighty Mississippi while landowners constructed their own levees.

Environmental Racism and Health Disparities are two of the many issues that affect the African American community. Environmental Racism occurs when people of color, who disproportionately live in lower income communities, are revealed to dangerous materials consisting of waste and toxins which are used or disposed of in their communities. Health Disparities occur when a group of people suffers inequalities of health advantages when compared to the access to quality health care and health advantages of another group besides the African Americans. Factors that contribute to issues of health disparities are the lack of health care coverage and vulnerability to toxins in the air. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity are common health disparities that deals with heart disease within the

While racism in the handling of the disaster was evident to many Southern blacks, some believe that poverty was a contributing factor. Not only were 90% of the citizens of New Orleans black, they were also extremely poor.

On the morning of August 29, 2005 was one of the deadliest hurricanes in the United States, known as Hurricane Katrina struck the south coast of New Orleans, leaving thousands of African American whom lived in Treme homeless, missing and hundreds dead. Way before the hurricane Treme, which is one of the oldest African American neighborhoods in New Orleans. “The city of New Orleans is officially divided into 73 neighborhoods grouped into 13 planning districts. Among these, the 4th district is of interest because of its central location, cultural history, and socio-economic challenges confronted prior to the catastrophe”(Barrios, 2). The reason why the 4th district was so

Since African Americans are limited to such opportunities, New Orleans is considered what is presumed to be a “racially segregated landscape of differentiated risk” -- spatial benefits of the post natural disastrous situation flowed to those who weren't from the lower socioeconomic tier. The racial projects that emphasize this formulation are found in how mainstream press coverage viewed those who were stranded and how structural programs not only failed to prepare relief but also intensified city

One of the most important parts of a community assessment is identifying the community’s health disparities in order to properly intervene and improve the health of the community. After conducting the windshield survey in Germantown, the top three health disparities discovered included: knowledge deficit regarding nutrition, exposure to toxic substances and physical hazards related to old housing, and lack of access to recreational space. Many houses in Germantown were built before the 1970s, which indicates that many people are exposed to lead-based paint, in particular the young children, who are more susceptible to experiencing negative health effects. Another prominent health disparity was the lack of access to recreational space. Through

Since Hurricane Katrina destroyed New Orleans, the city has been repopulated by rich whites and Latinos with African Americans returning to the area at much lower rates. Hurricane Katrina affected millions of people across the United States by tremendous flooding and Category 5 winds; Hurricane Katrina remains the most expensive and most destructive natural disaster to strike the United States.

This neighborhood is very culturally diverse and has a wide range of ages. There are both young and older families living in their neighborhood. Some aspects of the community that could affect resident's health are air pollution, aging populations, and noise disturbances. According to Health People 2020 leading health indicator for this population is environmental hazards. Some populations are disproportionately exposed to environmental hazards. As a result, health disparities exist. Exposures to environmental

At a time when labor was needed in the north, many blacks migrated from the south in order to find work. When they arrived, the immigrants, being a first or second generation American citizens themselves, became territorial, fearing that the safety of their jobs were at risk with the new found workers. Areas where segregation had faded away, suddenly came alive, with a vengeance. Not only were blacks separated from whites, but they were being targeted with acts of violence. African Americans who were living in areas with whites were forced to move into recognized black areas. Even educated middle class African Americans were separated from their homes in well off areas. As the African American population grew, the spaces got incredibly smaller. Families who were already in tight living quarters had to downsize into smaller apartments to accommodate other migrants from the south. Those who tried to get out of the ghetto were attacked in various ways. One common way was through acts of violence. Whites would bomb the houses of

Katrina hit New Orleans, Louisiana on August 29th, 2005, but the failure of the local government started before this day “by allowing building and growing in areas in low flood lands.” The local government did not regulate these land areas that have always

The responsibility for maintaining existing levees and building new ones falls to the federal, state and local governments. In reality, the costs of most infrastructure projects are in the hundreds-of-millions to billions of dollars. This means that the cost burden must fall on the federal government (Webster). The federal government, however, failed to provide the necessary resources to build protective infrastructure for U.S. citizens since, “Under the Bush administration there was little money for nor interest in internal improvements, as the federal dollar was spent mainly on the military while the nation's infrastructure continued to deteriorate” (George). Had more money been spent on internal improvements, more levees could have been built and the impact of the storm lessened.

Many White Men in New Orleans "exploited black women sexually with impunity. This created a mix-raced New Orleans known as Creoles, which a " persons of African and European descent born in Americas". They had social and economic priviledges that was refused to slaves. The Creole community in New Orleans immersed themselves in European values.

In the 1950’s and 1960’s, lead poisoning was found to be prevalent in the slums of the inner cities. These areas were referred to as the "lead belt" because these run down houses were havens for lead exposure. The flaking paint on walls, the chipping plaster ceilings, and the old furniture exposed these children to a real hazard. Pica was an important contributing factor and children, ages 1 to 3 were at the greatest risk. Siblings in these situations were often affected and recurrence was common because the lead paint was not removed. The prognosis for these children became worse with each recurrence (Chisholm, 1982).