Just listened to a couple of good shows about these subjects.
The September 3rd show is very very moving....

Here's the link:
www.coyotenetworknews.com/produ...ow.htm

September 10, 2009 Show

Marie Laveau's Birthday!

To honor the great Voodoo Queen of New Orleans, Caroline welcomes back (for the 1st portion of the show) New Orleans native, research professor of anthropology at the University of New Orleans, Martha Ward, author of the only reliable biography of Marie Laveau, Voodoo Queen.

September 3, 2009 Show

Honoring New Orleans
(5th anniversary of Katrina)

with 9th ward resident, creator of the Museum of House and Feathers,
Ronald W. Lewis.

Ronald, as well as being a street-car-repairman-union oganizer.
is the author of the book, The House of Dance and Feathers, dedicated
to the people of the Lower Ninth Ward and all the survivors of
Katrina, and is featured in Dan Baum's book about New Orleans, "Nine Lives."
Joining Ronald and Caroline is long-time ally and New Orleans
resident, Anne Marie Coviello.

www.houseofdanceandfeathers.com

From the web site:

Ronald W. Lewis is the founder, curator and director of the House of Dance and Feathers. After many years of working on the city’s streetcar track as a worker and union rep, he has devoted himself to cultural activism and education. After the flood, Ronald partnered with the Tulane City Center and Project Locus to plan the rebuilding of the backyard museum. In a wide-reaching collaboration, that pulled in architects, students and volunteers from all over the United States, the new museum was designed and built in the Summer of 2006. The participants labored in the long Louisiana summer, and the physical signs of construction in progress on Tupelo Street attracted the attention of out of town visitors, as well as displaced New Orleanians returning to tour their own home town. As was Ronald Lewis’ intention, the rebuilding of the museum on Tupelo Street contributed to the voices calling for neighbors to come home.

Since 2006, the museum has become an important gathering place for scholars, activists, students, neighbors, and volunteers to talk about the history and culture of the Lower Nine, and to discuss the rebuilding of New Orleans. The museum has also hosted numerous meetings, workshops, and gatherings for people who are working to make things happen in New Orleans. Visitors to the House of Dance and Feathers experience the power of self-representation and the value of cultural exchange. Mr. Lewis is currently working with Rachel Breunlin and the Neighborhood Story Project to produce a museum catalogue. In his museum tours and public talks, Mr. Lewis speaks eloquently about the social significance of place, family, and cultural traditions in community-building, and he has been an outspoken advocate for a resident-led rebuilding of the Lower Ninth Ward.

Partners and Supporters of the House of Dance and Feathers
Tulane City Center
Project Locus
CITYbuild Consortium of Schools
Kansas State University
Boston Architectural College School of Landscape Architecture
University of Montana Environmental Studies Program
Eskew Dumez Ripple