British authorities in London during the Blitz of World War II reacted in a similar overbearing and paternalistic way by worrying that citizens would act "like frightened and unsatisfied children." The truth was that the people carried on their lives during the day and at night they bedded down on the platforms of the underground because their homes were among the tens of thousands that had been destroyed.
"The people's role in their own defense and destiny was downplayed in order to stress an old-fashioned division of leaders and led," reflected historian Mark Connelly on the British response.
As Solnit examines people's resort to self-sufficiency, readers learn that disasters usually signal a societal turning point where its values and the strength of its structures are challenged not only by the obvious destruction of property but by a disruption of the social order. Yes, class war exists even in disaster where an imperceptible undercurrent resides among elites who are all about protecting their privilege and control of the society. (We last saw this in the man-made disaster of the bank failures and subsequent bailouts and bonuses.)
Kathleen Tierney, director of the University of Colorado Natural Hazards Center, refers to this phenomenon as "elite panic" where the concentration is all on preventing property crime as a justification to the use of force. And whom do the elites fear most? You guessed it: the poor, minorities and immigrants.
Sociologists contend that looting and civil disturbance are rare during disasters, however, the media can't resist it in order to "entertain our worst fears and then allay them"[when] all those rugged men and powerful leaders and advanced technologies" save the day. These portrayals of strength and control are especially important during a time of uncertainty. However, what the media consistently miss are the citizens' acts of bravery and kindness, which is what Solnit's book documents in a compelling way.
Given all this sociological data, it is refreshing to see that Fugate is trying to influence change in FEMA's disaster response. For example, he's veered away from the agency's paternalistic vow to "protect the Nation from all hazards" in favor of a more collaborative promise to "support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together."
He is also attempting to overcome today's therapy culture that regards citizens as fragile and traumatized victims.
"You're not going to hear me refer to people as victims unless we've lost "em," says Fugate. "I call them survivors."
In reality, Fugate is tapping into something precious when it comes to Americans' response to disaster: our democracy, our public life, our own sense of ourselves as actors on our circumstances and our relationships to each other.
Disaster has the potential to bring us together as a society, says Solnit. Given the history of Americans' initial response to disaster, we seem to know what to do if and when disaster strikes. In the meantime, we need to build confidence and self-reliance in ourselves and educate our leaders about how we want to be treated when we are most vulnerable because given the depth of environmental damage due to climate change, most of us will most surely be affected.
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