Latinos Get Little Thanks For Rebuilding New Orleans

NPR ^ | December 10, 2011 | Richard Gonzales

[moonshinner_09]

Since Katrina, the Hispanic population in the New Orleans metro area has skyrocketed by more than 33,000 people. That's a 57-percent increase in the past decade, much higher than the national average.

They came for the construction jobs — and they've chosen to stay. Often, you can find about a dozen Latino men hanging out near a home improvement store looking for work near a mostly black neighborhood.

Yohanni Castillo, 38, a carpenter from Honduras, says he's been here since the early days of Katrina.

"Carpentry, demolitions, any kind of construction," he says. But lately, he says there's been less work available.

Castillo says the main problem is that employers want workers who have the papers to prove they're here legally. Right after Katrina, no one really cared. The other problem, he says, is that sometimes he doesn't get paid the wages he's been promised.

And everybody here can tell you the same story, Castillo says, because it's happened to everyone.

[moonshinner_09]

These illegals should understand nobody ever said life was fair. Everybody who could helped out in regard to Katrina

[Mikey_1962]

Latinos Get Little Thanks For Rebuilding New Orleans

Thanks. Now go home.

[Pelham]

“They came for the construction jobs — and they’ve chosen to stay. “

A continuing gift from Dubya, Rove, and the rest of the Open Borders traitors in the GOP. New Orleans follows in the footsteps of SoCal, another formerly American region. Say adios.

[bigdirty]

They can’t be force than the native New Orleans savages who shot at police, murdered and raped in the streets and looted every store they could.

[DManA]

Did they get a salary while they were doing it or was it pure good hearted benevolence?

Thank you ceramics worker for the cup I’m drinking my coffee out of. If you were a Latino so much the better.

[OldMissileer]

I find it interesting the Spanish speaking population traveled there to find work while the indigenous population sit on their a$$es waiting for others to do the wok for them.

[17th Miss Regt]

Of course that will happen. New Orleans is a Chocolate City!

[jetson]

Thank the locusts’?

[AD from SpringBay]

You are not supposed to notice things like that.

[NCDave]

They want to be thanked for driving down the wage and keeping American workers from doing the job??? Oh, and again, they are now hanging out at the home depot..lol..why don`t they hire themselves? Non productive community...Stagnation and demise of the area due to illegal status, go home.

[King Moonracer]

Blacks are waiting for no show union jobs. Between unions, illegals, and go-with-the-flow crony capitalist, wages will never be market driven in a regional market.
.

[Dilbert San Diego]

I know liberals and even some here might flame me. But, here goes. The young black men in New Orleans could have worked towards rebuilding the city. Given the scope of the disaster, there was a great need for people whether they had particular job skills in construction or not. It could have been a learning opportunity for on the job training for some. Instead, we saw illegals do work. It was a lost opportunity, which could have saved some from a life of gang life.

[JustaDumbBlonde]

"I find it interesting the Spanish speaking population traveled there to find work while the indigenous population sit on their a$$es waiting for others to do the wok for them."

Absolutely true. My husband went down there to help out and quickly got disillusioned because nobody was interested in helping themselves.

[PieterCasparzen]

A) you don’t get “thanks” for working, you get pay.

B) if you’re in the country illegally, you have zero legitimate complaint. you are breaking U.S. law by being here.

in the duh category, employers are an important enforcement point. if there is little to no enforcement of hiring illegal aliens, that creates a magnet that will pull illegals to the U.S. Enforcement on businesses is easy compared to chasing individual people around. A President just has to nod their head ok to enforcement by businesses and the jobs for illegals will dry up to very little.

[King Moonracer]

Blacks are waiting for no show union jobs. Between unions, illegals, and go-with-the-flow crony capitalist, wages will never be market driven in a regional market.
.

[Ernie Kaputnik]

Why the hell should we thank them? Did they work for free?

They came here to work and were paid for the work they performed. And now that the work is done, they need to get the f*ck out my country.

[ßuddaßudd]

"Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job."

[Navy Patriot]

I wish NPR would preface these articles with instructions on which coddled and privileged entitlement minority is superior in each instance, I get so confused in how I'm supposed to think.

[Chode]

they expect to be thanked for taking jobs and soaking up welfare resources???

[aliquando]

My wife went as a Red Cross nurse to Biloxi. The Red Cross was a mess, but the ladies would take teir own time to drive to a Wal Mart about 50 miles away and get the stuff people needed. The people were grateful for the help and cleaning up the mess. Different culture.