Finding the Way Home
- Description
- Reviews
- Citation
- Cataloging
- Transcript
Photojournalist Brenda Ann Kenneally travels to Louisiana two years after the storm to document the difficult process of returning home. In personal accounts of families' struggles, Kenneally charts the emotional toll of so much loss, and shows what it takes to patch together a new life.
Citation
Main credits
Kenneally, Brenda Ann (filmmaker)
Kenneally, Brenda Ann (photographer)
Maierson, Eric (film producer)
Other credits
Photography and video, Brenda Ann Kenneally; cinematography by Taylor Gentry; original music by Ben Schmidt.
Distributor subjects
African American Studies, American Studies, U.S. History, Children & Youth studies, Family issues, Hurricane Katrina, Environment, Economic Anthropology, Sociology, poverty; Expository; WOKeywords
WEBVTT
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My name is Therum. And
I live in Mississippi
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(inaudible) and umm… my name is Therum.
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I went to the shop there because Hurricane
Katrina washed away our houses.
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I lost in the slum (inaudible) a wave
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that is (inaudible) and I\'m… I
lost most of my (inaudible).
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[music]
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My name is Sam, I\'m seven years old.
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Since the storm, I lived in a (inaudible).
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I don\'t like (inaudible) because
it\'s boring and does nothing to do.
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I used to have a lot of toys, now I don\'t.
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I do for fun now ride my scooter
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and play with my toys that I have.
My life is different
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because I don\'t see my friends no more.
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They would give us $10,000
dollars to do everything.
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It uh… fixed roof, jack to house up,
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and (inaudible).
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[music]
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Probably it going to cost
me about another $15,000
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to get everything fixed. We depend a lot of times
on (inaudible) for extra money and everything,
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because after all if the Sam dips his hand in our
pockets, you don\'t have enough to pay the bills.
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It\'s going to take me a little while to fix
in my house back up so we can get back in it,
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but you generally think that (inaudible)
happy. We\'re happy and we\'re still together.
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[sil.]
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I\'ve been back here to… in
the house for two weeks.
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[music]
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We have everything we need. We got a house full
of, we got four beautiful kids, a beautiful wife.
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We don\'t have the best place
in the world, but it\'s ours.
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[music]
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Michael got this for me for Valentine this year
and asked me how many years (inaudible) valentine
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because I couldn\'t pay you.
What ever she wants, she gets.
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That\'s my choice. She
can just tell again now
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\"oh, baby, I want more perhaps home like this, she\'s going to get
it, it might take me a week or two but she\'s going to get it.
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[sil.]
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You know, I don\'t have to do that
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as she used to because I love her. Since
Katrina, I\'ve had three jobs. Four.
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Three. Trinity, Raise…
oh, four, yeah, four.
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I haven\'t really been making that much
money. We\'re struggling really hard.
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I can\'t land any good side jobs
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and can\'t land a good regular job or valid job, but… It\'s not
paid enough. It\'s not paid enough, and I don\'t work every day.
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You\'re okay? You\'re okay?
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I need a beer.
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I work from 07:30 to 05:30.
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[sil.]
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When we come home, that\'s we do this.
Right after storm,
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we didn\'t get a gas bill
for like three months
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and when we got our gas bill
like, I\'ve seen this a one big…
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one huge gas bill and they told us we\'d to pay it all
in full or they\'re going to turn… turn the gas off,
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so we (inaudible) job. Because
there was no way (inaudible) $800.
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(inaudible), I just took it from the
shelve. When they turned the gas off,
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we had a heater at house
over our construction site,
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gas heater that I had that ran off
appropring 5 gallons would last about
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six hours.
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[music]
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Bunking school? (inaudible)
$5 it is, $5 a day,
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$10 it is, $10 day, $8 it is, $8 a day.
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(inaudible) fucking crazy.
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[sil.]
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(inaudible).
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[music]
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It might not look good, but it damn sure
it tastes good. Jarad! Hm-Hmm. Love it?
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Hm-Hmm. (inaudible). (inaudible) serving,
give me a bear to wash this damn dishes.
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(inaudible).
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[sil.]
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[music]
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I deserve sex now.
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[music]
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(inaudible)
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he\'ll probably get it.
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[music]
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[sil.]
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[music]
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[music]
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Thank you for the Reindeer food.
You kids were
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really good this year. I hope
you keep up the good work.
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I\'ll see you next year (inaudible) same.
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Yeh… yeh … (inaudible).
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And you know what… (inaudible).
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(inaudible).
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[music]
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Hey that\'s mine. (inaudible).
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[music]
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Thank you mum, thank you daddy.
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[music]
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(inaudible).
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I would wish that was a little bit better
what I\'m now. I don\'t mind struggling.
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You struggling just build
up in you those who care to
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and makes you strong and I\'ll but…
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I just wish I didn\'t have to struggle
so hard. We\'ll see right now,
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I\'m (inaudible)
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we can lose everything we got tomorrow
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and wouldn\'t have no where to go and that\'s
is the, you know, chance we got it today.
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[sil.]