FLOOD10353 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

77 assume that there is just one "culture") and the marginalized populations who may not be recognized and represented by local governments or other institutions. Marginalized groups are often Teluctant to respond to formal government systems or other entities that may try to help during a disaster. People are often suspicious of individuals or agencies that hold over them the power of income or services. In our work, we have found that people are much more willing to trust a person from the religious community, even if that person is a stranger; a representative from the religious community can be an advocate without negatively impacting their day-to-day existence. The recovery and mitigation work of CWS and the local religious communities takes on a different form than that of a more formal group such as the Red Cross or the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Recovery and mitigation begin with the training of individuals in the vulnerable community in leadership skills, thus helping to open the doors of the "formal" structures to them. The local leadership can then work on the vulnerabilities Peterson and Krajeski I of the local population. Although CWS and the religious communities are active in structural recovery and mitigation (rebuilding and elevation-for example), our concern also focuses on pre-existing nonstructural conditions. The barriers that produce vulnerability are correctable, some more easily than others. These barriers include, but are not limited to, housing, literacy, transportation, language, water, toxic dumps, jobs, and poverty. Following disasters, we hear the survivors, caregivers, and local government saying that they want to get the community back to normal. Normal seems to be a goal for most, but for vulnerable groups, normal may mean a return to oppressive and substandard conditions. Some recovery and mitigation policies actually worsen vulnerability. For example, a home that had a leaky roof before the disaster needs to be replaced in total, but some relief and recovery agencies will only grant repairs to restore the structure to "pre-existing conditions," that is, the state of the home prior to the disaster. In addition, mitigation for vulnerable populations must often include justice, jobs, and land-use reform. The religious community is generally more free to act than other recovery and mitigation agencies and can focus on doing what is necessary for the good of the survivors and their communities. The religious community only needs to think about what is right, just, and ethical; therefore, it has the freedom and flexibility to employ creative mitigation measures. It does not always live up to this call and sometimes is as short-sighted as others. But because it tends to be community based, representative, and inclusive. the