Katrina Reconstruction Brings Race to Forefront

By John Burnett

Published January 11, 2006 at 1:23 PM EST

From the beginning, when the world saw images of African American storm victims waiting for rescue in New Orleans, race has been part of the story of Katrina. The city's recovery has also become an issue of black and white. In this majority African American city, some people believe there is a hidden agenda to discourage some of them from returning home.

John Burnett

As NPR's Southwest correspondent based in Austin, Texas, John Burnett covers immigration, border affairs, Texas news and other national assignments. In 2018, 2019 and again in 2020, he won national Edward R. Murrow Awards from the Radio-Television News Directors Association for continuing coverage of the immigration beat. In 2020, Burnett along with other NPR journalists, were finalists for a duPont-Columbia Award for their coverage of the Trump Administration's Remain in Mexico program. In December 2018, Burnett was invited to participate in a workshop on Refugees, Immigration and Border Security in Western Europe, sponsored by the RIAS Berlin Commission.

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