I Bet I Know Where You Got Your Jackboots: Immigration Sweeps in New Orleans
Photograph by Nathaniel St. Clair
Another city is readying itself to be the recipient of an immigration force “deployment”. This time, it’s the Crescent City that’s up to bat. The details on the New Orleans plan aren’t entirely clear yet, but indications are leaking out that the forces that were in Charlotte earlier this year may be coming to Southeast Louisiana in December–snowbirds of the very worst kind.
It does seem interesting that a city with a fabulous overall winter climate would become the new focus during the holidays, even conveniently into Mardi Gras season. It will be an enjoyable diversion for the jackboots to partake in the celebrations that wouldn’t exist without a myriad of cultures mingling in the city. The kinds of cultures they will arrive to eradicate, of course. Deploying after Nov. 30 means they will be able to avoid hurricane season as well, and any concern about being pressed to actually help if one hit. Not that they would offer any assistance. This coming crew is about destruction and displacement, really more in common with the actual hurricanes than not.
It’s with an additional layer of cruelty that it is a city that has much of its immigrant community hailing from Central America. You know, the nations that were made unstable and violent due to American backed mayhem, often at the behest of corporations like United Fruit. New Orleans has a long history of being involved with such things. In 1910 a group of gangster plotters, led by the ridiculously named Lee Christmas, joined together in the New Orleans red-light district of Storyville at the behest of ridiculously nicknamed Sam “The Banana Man” Zemurray (of United Fruit). From Storyville, they planned their assault on a nation not pleasing current corporate interests. Zemurray needed them to get rid of President Miguel Davila’s government in Honduras. That leader wanted to limit foreign ownership of the nation and to make these profiteering groups actually pay taxes. Unacceptable! Unacceptable! You may know Sam’s old house, it’s where the president of Tulane today lives. Sam’s been kinda whitewashed of many misdeeds because he gave away a few things. Like if a thief clears your house of its antiques and gives you back, well…… a banana in return. But anyway, yeah the leader of Honduras was ousted and another nation was made unstable by ridiculous and greedy hands.
Of course,........
