Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time

Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time is a documentary that explores the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, focusing on the government's delayed response and the racial and economic inequalities it exposed. Through survivor accounts, expert interviews, and archival footage, the film highlights how systemic failures and neglect disproportionately affected Black communities in New Orleans, turning a natural disaster into a human rights crisis.

I vividly remember Hurricane Katrina because I was in medical school in San Antonio at the time and our city/school received some of the displaced evacuees at the time. Although the storm was a category 4, it was the levees breaking and subsequent flooding that was the real disasters. This documentary shifted some of the memories I had at the time. The media ran with the rumor mill at of people being killed and raped at the Superdome, which I thought at the time was actually occurring. I found myself yelling at the tv as I was watching this documentary because I was so frustrated by the police, military, and the city's response to this disaster. My fear is something similar could easily happen again given the current political climate combined with worsening global warming with the poorest Americans and people of color being again the ones to suffer the most.

I remember when this happened, and how the response from our government at the time was horrendously slow. Other reviewers will say this is a social justice piece. The truth is it is. But I would like to highlight that black and white folks were victims, and also the helpers that cared for people of all colors on the ground during this travesty. You can't say this is a documentary about racism, it was about a lack of proper infrastructure, the plight of underserved and financially poor people, and a complete failure of government on all levels. You can't blame "looters" as they called them, they were trying to provide basic necessities when everyone else failed them. I would have done the same. It is something I hope will never happen again, and I would urge anyone who reads this to help however you can in your local communities. We are all human beings after all, don't ever lose your humanity.

A good look back 20 years after the disaster.

Sure, the hurricane in itself was devastating, but the failure of the readiness of the city is what comes to the forefront.

Local, regional, and national leaders were unprepared.

Also citizens, when they say evacuate, then evacuate. Understandably some had little choice because of health or little resources, but many just decided to ride it out.

Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time was a real eye-opener for me. I already knew Katrina was devastating, but I didn't realise just how badly it impacted the community afterwards. Hearing the survivor stories was harrowing but also powerful, as they shared their own experiences of losing family, friends, and homes. It really showed how much pain people carried, and how some felt the government didn't do enough to help them through it.

The documentary also raised the issue of race and inequality. While racism is undeniably a big issue worldwide, I felt that in the face of a natural disaster, the most important thing is people coming together as human beings, no matter their race or beliefs, to support each other in times of need. Still, it was clear that many found it hard to rebuild their lives, and as often happens, the rich seemed to come out better while the poor suffered most.

The pacing of the series was well done. Each episode felt different, focusing on a specific element of the disaster and its aftermath, and it kept me engaged from start to finish. The footage shown was shocking, showing the devastation in raw detail, and it really hammered home the scale of what people went through.

Overall, I think Race Against Time tackled important issues and raised real concerns that still matter today. I would definitely recommend it to others, especially those with an interest in global warming or natural disasters, because it's not just a story of the past - it's a warning for the future.

This documentary was truly an eye opener of what hurricane Katrina really was. As an 11th grader in all of the years I have been in school this was not a really big discussion that was brought up and discussed in detail about the horrors these poor people have went through. It really shows how the government failed the people of New Orleans and how racism is still a HUGE issue in modern America. I also like how the documentary discusses how easy this disaster could have been prevented if the government would have stepped up and took the precautions to protect the people in the worst case scenario.