(Washington, D.C.) -- One year after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) urged the U.S. government to accept responsibility for the systematic and widespread forfeiture of human rights that has resulted from failed government systems and a perceived apathy toward survivors of the storm.

"Today, as we stand in solidarity with tens of thousands who still suffer the impact of Hurricane Katrina, we must acknowledge that while the storm caused suffering on a mass scale, it is not responsible for the human rights vacuum that has persisted in its wake," said Larry Cox, executive director of AIUSA. "With inscrutable systems and maze-like bureaucracies, federal and local governments alike have nearly ensured that the most vulnerable survivors do not get the assistance they so desperately need."

Recovery has been slow, and for many the situation has not improved at all. Housing is less affordable; rent in New Orleans has reportedly increased an average of 39 percent over the past year, and home prices in suburban parishes are also up. Gas service reaches 41 percent of New Orleans' pre-Katrina customers and electricity reaches only 60 percent. Less than half of the public schools are open (56 of 128), and the only public hospital (Charity) remains closed as are more than half of the other hospitals, according to academics, news reports and advocacy groups.

Additionally, environmental cleanup has been inadequate. To date, millions of tons of toxic sludge are suspected to remain in the greater New Orleans area. AIUSA today mobilized its nationwide membership to demand that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) meet its legal obligation to remove the millions of tons of toxic sediment that are estimated to still linger in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

"Access to education, decent housing and a healthy, safe environment are not luxuries for the privileged -- they are basic human rights, and our government is obligated to uphold them, especially for the most marginalized communities," said Dalia Hashad, director of AIUSA?s U.S. Human Rights Program. "Katrina shed light on the gross race and class inequities in this country, and as we take stock of our progress a year later, the picture is bleak. The recovery effort has been slowest in reaching communities of color and the economically disenfranchised. This speaks volumes to the progress that needs to be made."

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Contact: Wende Gozan at 212/633-4247

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