Katrina's Legacy:
White Racism and Black Reconstruction
in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast

by Eric Mann

“Buy this book and study it well. Eric Mann was my first teacher in the black freedom movement; he taught me door-to-door canvassing and basic organizing. And then he introduced me to SNCC. Eric is still teaching and organizing a new generation, and setting the pace as we build up our strength for the Battle of New Orleans.”

— Komozi Woodard, author of A Nation within a Nation: Amiri Baraka
and Black Power Politics

“Eric Mann is one of the few people who can combine strategy, tactics, effective grassroots organizing, and compelling writing.”

— Phil Hutchings, former Chair, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee

“Katrina's Legacy stands with Black Nations 9/11 as the clearest strategic statement within the movement, a must read for anyone working in solidarity with the reconstruction movement in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.”

— Kali Akuno, People’s Hurricane Relief Fund Oversight Coalition

“Mann’s writing is a door. Our movement, and indeed, the very life of Black New Orleans, depends on our ability to fully comprehend and embrace the counter-hegemonic and long-term movement building demands that Mann describes.”

— Xochitl Bervera, Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children

“Excellent. Mann has a distinct talent for drawing political lessons from historical events. Every movement needs a map. Katrina's Legacy takes us to the ravaged Gulf Coast and shows us how to find the road toward a Third Reconstruction. America needs this movement, and Eric helps us find our way.”

— Vijay Prashad, author of Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting:
Afro-Asian Connections and the Myth of Cultural Purity

“Places the Gulf catastrophe in the historical context of racist capitalist rule in the U.S. at a critical time when the ‘cracks in the ruling class levees’ are visible for all to see. Mann provides political leadership, the outlines of a plan for action, and calls us to our battle stations.”

— Glen Ford, Executive Editor and Co-Publisher, The Black Commentator

“From the first days after Katrina struck New Orleans, Eric Mann has been a crucial ally to organizers on the ground. His Katrina's Legacy is vital for anyone looking for a deeper understanding of what happened in New Orleans, and what we can do about it.”

— Jordan Flaherty, New Orleans organizer; Editor, Left Turn Magazine

“An inspiring call to action rooted in a powerful tradition of Black resistance in the South. It provides a comprehensive framework, a clear vision and strategy for this moment in history to build the movement among communities of color and low-wage workers.”

— Ai-jen Poo, CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities