Seeking Higher Ground

Hurricane Katrina of August-September 2005, one of the most destructive natural disasters in U.S. history, dramatically illustrated the continuing racial and class inequalities of America. In this powerful reader, Seeking Higher Ground, prominent scholars and writers examine the racial impact of the disaster and the failure of governmental, corporate and private agencies to respond to the plight of the New Orleans black community. Contributing authors include Julianne Malveaux, Melissa Harris-Lacewell, Ronald Walters, Chester Hartman, Gregory D. Squires, Mindy Thompson Fullilove, Alan Stein, and Gene Preuss. This reader is the second volume of the Souls Critical Black Studies Series, edited by Manning Marable, and produced by the institute for Research in African-American Studies of Columbia University.

Manning Marable is Professor of History and Political Science and Director, Institute for Research in African American Studies, Columbia University.

Kristen Clarke is a graduate of Harvard University and Columbia Law School and a civil rights attorney at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. Her work on race, law and democracy appears in numerous journals, books and other publications.