Recent coverage of Hurricane Katrina has shed a harsh light on the Bush administration's indifference to the well-being of African Americans. Now we need to beam that light onto the long-standing pattern of racism in President Bush's five-year record. Using the rainbow cabinet for cover, he has pursued a series of policies that punish and reward people on the basis of race.
It is obvious now that the devastation caused by Katrina was preventable and that New Orleanians lost out to Bush's other priorities""the tax cut for America's upper ranks as well as the Iraq war and subsequent occupation, costing $400 billion total. These decisions frame the dynamics of Bush's disregard for people of color. He has gutted the public programs that help the poor and people of color maintain a basic standard of living, and done away with the civil rights protections that defend our humanity. RINKU SEN |