Where were you?

One year ago tonight I was contraflowing through the state of Mississippi with only a few days clothes and a woman I hardly knew at the time trying to find a place to stay in Hattiesburg, then Meridian, then... anywhere.. until we finally crashed in a red cross shelter in Tuscaloosa, Alabama around 2:00 AM or so. When I went to sleep on the floor of that gym I was far too exhausted to worry. I had no idea it would be October before I was allowed to return home. Moreover, I had no inkling of just how much of my home would be changed forever. When I returned, one of my first tasks was to enter the flooded library branches in search of salvageable materials.. and personal items requested by various staff members. Branch libraries often reflect the character and vitality of the neighborhoods they serve. When a neighborhood suffers, its library reflects that suffering as well. A year after Katrina, these six libraries, still shuttered, continue to provide a window to what is still missing in New Orleans

Robert E Smith Regional ...... Lakeview

Norman Mayer Branch ...... Gentilly

Rosa Keller Branch ...... Broadmoor

Nora Navra Branch ...... Seventh Ward

East New Orleans Regional Branch ...... East New Orleans

Martin Luther King Branch ...... Lower Ninth Ward