Student: Rachel Jacobson
Graduation date: May 2018
Capstone type: Non-thesis
Capstone project:
Come Hell or High Water: Disparities in Health During Coastal Storms
Capstone file(s): Show file | Show file
In order to look at how conceptualizations of disaster cause our institutions to change over time, this project examines the changes in the disaster management policies and practices of the United States of America in Gulf Coast states during the time between Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Within vulnerable coastal communities, there are even more vulnerable populations that have further barriers to safety when it comes to storms. After Hurricane Katrina hit, there was an outcry pinpointing the ways in which these marginalized communities were far more affected by the storm and even proposed some concrete measures for government to utilize in order to help these communities during future disaster events. This lead me to the question: How has the way we address unequal health burdens of minority communities during hurricane disasters in the Gulf Coast changed since Hurricane Katrina? Therefore, this study focuses on the general understanding of disaster by the public, the spatial arrangement of marginalized populations in Houston relative to hazards and resources, the lived experience of these people during Hurricane Harvey, and the new statutes passed by the government in the years following Hurricane Katrina to conclude that we as a society continue to tackle the symptoms of disaster without actually addressing the root causes.
To see the website outcome connected to this project, go to https://houstonhurricanes101.wordpress.com/