Background
Late in 2005, a string of severe hurricanes hammered the US Gulf Coast. Their names—Katrina, Rita, and Wilma—will be forever linked with an ugly truth about our country: Poverty exists here in the US, and is particularly deep and persistent in the regions hit hardest by the hurricanes. The storms swept away the veil of pretense, revealing the face of a national shame. more »
What Oxfam is Doing
Oxfam's immediate response to the hurricanes has grown into a five-year, $12 million program in Mississippi and Louisiana, which focuses on safe and affordable housing as well as worker and immigrant rights. The program combines financial support to key partner organizations with on-the-ground technical support. more »
"A Portrait of Mississippi": The Mississippi Human Development Report 2009.
This study illuminates the sharp disparities in opportunity between regions and between races within Mississippi. The report forces us to acknowledge who is thriving, and who is being shut out.
"Mirror on America"
How the state of Gulf Coast recovery reflects on us all.
What You Can Do
- Contribute to Oxfam's Gulf Coast Hurricane Recovery Fund.
- Take action. Tell FEMA to deliver supplies to those affected by Hurricane Katrina.
- Learn more. Read "Mirror on America," Oxfam's report on the status of Gulf Coast recovery three years later. View our slideshows to watch the recovery and rebuilding effort unfold.
- Want to do more? Oxfam has developed a number of tools and resources to help you organize events and educate others about humanitarian emergencies.