Hurricane Katrina residents classifed as "refugees"..Cal wildfire residents classifed as "homeowners" "victims

Question

I've been paying close attention to this latest catastrophe and noticed the difference in reporting. Why aren't these people being classifed as "refugees" They are in the san diego chargers stadium, they have been displaced. Aren't they refugees too? Why are they instead referring to them as "homeowners" or "residents" where they were calling those affected by hurricane katrina "refugees"

Regardless of whether or not people left their homes when told, why are they called refugees? That is the qst I am asking here.

Sierra Sky - No one brought up anything about race....things that make you go hmmmm.

Answer 1

Depends on what news source you are using & the spin they are choosing to put on the stories.

Answer 2

i really don't think it has anything to do with race even though a lot of people are saying it is. a lot of people are quick to think it has things to do with race that they don't pay attention to the little things. the term refugee is more used for victims who are encountering utter devastation like New Orleans did. the victims of Katrina were left with no homes and were stuck at the Superdome with no food, water, blankets etc. the victims in Sand Diego however are a little different. although they are stuck at a stadium like in New Orleans, not all the victims have lost their homes. some homes have been salvaged and people were even given permission to go back, whereas in New Orleans all the victims lost their homes. also the people at Qualcomm have food, water, tents, blankets and even entertainment, and the victims at the Superdome had nothing. so the conditions in San Diego are not bad enough to call the victims refugees, but in New Orleans it was.

Answer 3

Refugees sound more political to the left leaning MSM. Far easier to hit Bush that than calling the people in NO victims or homeowners.

Answer 4

Because even though they are displaced they are not leaving the state. When Katrina hit people actually left the state and went to other states. Thats why they were called refugees and the California ones are homeowners. The other difference is that most displaced during Katrina were poor and a lot of them didn't own the property either. Thats not to say that there were homeowners displaced there were it's just that the majority didn't

Answer 5

Well, I always thought that refugee was a really weird term to call the Katrina victims. However, I suppose it IS accurate or in keeping with the use of that term, such as refugees of famine in other places in the world.

Answer 6

If one person reads this, I have planted a seed. It is a shame that America will not and can not talk about the reality of comparing the two tragedies without the race card being brought up and used. One Definition of 'refugee'... n. a civilian who, by reason of real or imagined danger, has left home to seek safety elsewhere.

Based on the one of many definitions found on google as listed above, the people of California ARE ALSO refugees. As far as calling them homeowners...The vast majority of residents in California ARE home owners, whereas the vast majority of New Orleans evacuee's were NOT and lived in government subsidized or free (tax payers) housing...Just as they were waiting for government transportation out of the area, government assistance in any way they could get, unlike the residents of California who are not waiting for a hand-out.
One last thing before I close and this gets deleted, anyone else noticed the difference in the looting, violence,
and 'trashing/destroying' of shelters (stadium) from the California evacuees/refugees compared to the New Orleans evacuees/refugees ?? Things that make you go 'MMMmmmmm?'

Answer 7

Katrina victims were called refugees because they were helpless and fully reliant and dependent on a (local) socialist government that had neglected them.

San Diego victims are homeowners and residents because they are self-reliant and never considered themselves dependent on government for help.

Basically, every one who embraces Democrat ideology, where very rich politicians give their peon serfs everything they think those peons need and keep them perpetually dependent on them and forever poor, those peons are virtual slaves and automatically refugees in the making.

People who reject the socialist nanny state that is the Democrat utopia, and instead choose to be self-reliant, independent, and pursue the American dream of self-worth and self-responsibility, those people will never allow themselves to become refugees.

For once the media has gotten it right with its terminology.

Don't worry, though. If the Democrats have their way, there will be millions of illegal Mexican refugees before long. Democrats are already salivating at the chance to enslave another race. (Especially since a lot of African Americans are finally catching on and realizing they are sick of being virtual slaves for mega-rich white folks living in compounds, and they're starting to not vote Democrat.)

Answer 8

We don't consider ourselves victims. We pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and help ourselves and our community.

When you have communities that have pulled together and have received donations of food, diapers, cots, blankets, and volunteers - not waiting for the feds to step in - that says a lot about the people!

To those that mention the lack of looting in CA, people were told that if they were caught they would be nailed. In NO, they were told that looters wouldn't be prosecuted so of course there was mass looting!

The LOCAL government failed the people of NO, the feds just added to the problem. SD doesn't have that problem because our local people took charge!

I am so sick of people claiming that SD is a bunch of rich white people - that's a lie. They claim things like those poor people in NO didn't have time to leave and it wasn't there fault that they were stuck in their homes. Truth is they sat on their butts and didn't help themselves when they had the chance. That's a big difference between SD & NO.

Answer 9

These catastrophes are very difficult situations that we've never had to deal with before. Mistakes happen and improvements are made. It's real easy to sit back and condemn things. It really doesn't help anybody to bring these points up. If you know how to use a dictionary you'll find the word refugee as a person who has to flee for safety.

Answer 10

Could be because most of them left without knowing if their houses burned down or not, but if you lived in New Orleans during Katrina, you could be pretty sure your house was badly damaged. Most of the people who are evacuated in California will be able to go home as soon as the fires are out.

I understand your point, but the situation with Katrina was not like anything I've ever seen in the US before or since. Those people were abandoned by the government (local, state and federal) and waited days and days for help, and many people died as a result of being abandoned, which has also NOT been the case in California.

Answer 11

Because although the Hurricane Katrina victims were told to evacuate, most of them had to be rescued out of their homes. Most of the San Diego and Orange County victims evacuated and most of them didnt have to be rescued.