State Rep. Alonzo Knox still gets emotional when he speaks about the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused 19 years ago.
“The impact of it can't be overstated,” Knox said. “It still impacts the day-to-day lives of many. It still impacts our fragile infrastructure. It still impacts our economy.”
Knox is one of a number of New Orleans leaders who want to make Katrina's anniversary on Aug. 29 an official government holiday. He spoke during a gathering of local government officials, cultural leaders and reporters on Thursday at Rep. Knox’s office in the Garden District.
“From the state level, I have staff that is actually doing research to determine what that feasibility would look like,” Knox said. “I'm actually pursuing that.”
The state currently recognizes 12 days as official holidays, including Mardis Gras and Good Friday. The idea of adding Katrina’s anniversary has been tossed around for years and is picking up steam ahead of next year’s landmark 20th anniversary, Knox said.
Doing so would require a state allocation of funding, approval from the legislature and the governor’s signature, he added.
Councilmembers and cultural leaders at the gathering echoed the call to make it a holiday as a way to memorialize the more than 1,800 Louisiana residents who died during the storm and its aftermath.
“The memories will go away sometimes if you don't have something that is concrete that helps people to remember,” said New Orleans City Councilman Eugene J. Green.
“We will always remember Hurricane Katrina, but if we did it as a holiday and students were out and potentially doing community service work on that day, I think it would just continue to motivate people to remember, but also to celebrate what we have accomplished,” Green said.
Gov. Jeff Landry hasn’t said whether he would support the idea. A spokeswoman for the governor hasn’t responded to a request for comment as of this writing.
People who attended thegathering praised community-led commemorations of the anniversary. This year, a new museum exhibit opened. Organizers of New Orleans’ annual Katrina March and Second Line plan to march through the Lower 9th Ward on Aug. 31, with musical performances, voter registration education and speeches from environmental justice activists.
Dawn Richard, a Katrina survivor and artist relations director of the Hip Hop Caucus, said keeping the community’s stories of perseverance alive is what matters most.
“I had to watch my mom and dad be homeless. We lived in a car,” she said. “When my niece and nephew come here, they will know and respect and it'll be passed down to their children and we will understand how much they loved this city. Your stories are all you have when you lose your pictures.”
Planning is underway for a long series of events commemorating the 20th anniversary in 2025. Other speakers at Thursday’s event, including Rapper Mia X, Poet Sunni Patterson and New Orleans Councilman Oliver Thomas said they would advocate for everyday residents’ voices to be included in ceremonies.
Sess 4-5, CEO of Nuthin’ But Fire Records, said the creation of an official holiday would be meaningful to many New Orleans residents who are still living in the storm’s aftermath.
“Rest assured that in 2025, Aug. 29 will have a state resolution and also be Katrina Day,” he said.
