Revolution #58, August 27, 2006


 

Spike Lee at Press Conference in New Orleans

“...What Happened Here was a Criminal Act”

At the premiere of When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts at the New Orleans Arena on August 16, a press conference was held featuring director Spike Lee. The first question came from Carl Dix, National Spokesperson for the Revolutionary Communist Party, USA, representing Revolution newspaper. Spike Lee’s answer to Carl Dix’s question was printed in part in mainstream news media ranging from the South Mississippi Sun Herald to the BBC (British Broadcasting Company—the main news network in the United Kingdom). Below is Carl Dix’s question and Spike Lee’s response in full:

Carl Dix: One year ago today we saw tens of thousands of people left in New Orleans to die as the flood waters surged in. Today you’re coming out with this documentary and I guess what I’d like to know is, one, what do you want people to take away from seeing this movie, and two, these officials who were responsible for things like the lack of attention to the levees, the lack of an evacuation plan, and everything else that led to people’s deaths could actually be called to account for what I think can only be called a criminal response to the disaster of Hurricane Katrina.

Spike Lee: Good question. This is my 20th film in 20 years. And one thing I’ve learned is not to dictate to the audience what they should think or what they should do. I respect the intelligence of the audience. I respect their response to the movies I make.

I do agree with you though that what happened here was a criminal act, that what happened here was not the result of Mother Nature.

There was in this movie a challenge to capture the dignity, the poignancy of individuals in New Orleans as they talk about the loss of life experienced here, because the people in charge were not doing their job.

I’d like to see somebody go to the hoosegow, go to jail.

Send us your comments.

If you like this article, subscribe, donate to and sustain Revolution newspaper.

Basics
What Humanity Needs
From Ike to Mao and Beyond