Alex LeMay's documentary about displaced African Americans who found themselves abruptly relocated in the chaotic weeks following Hurricane Katrina from the racially diverse New Orleans to the virtually all-white state of Utah achieves an admirable balance, neither vilifying nor sanctifying either the uprooted New Orleanians nor the sometimes-hostile, largely Mormon Utahns.
LeMay begins by introducing a cross-section of people who needed somewhere to rest and get back on their feet after the hurricane and subsequent flooding, but eventually focuses on two families: The Pleasants, Curtis, Gwendolyn and their five children, and Clifford Andrews, unmarried father of two, and his longtime girlfriend, Donna Williams. They're among 600 African American evacuees who didn't even know they were being flown to Utah – whose non-white population is less than 1% -- until they were in the air. They arrive amid rumors of chaos and lawlessness in New Orleans, greeted by people who've never seen a black person in the flesh (that LeMay finds African-American Mormons to interview speaks to his determination). Not surprisingly, the immediate reception is less than welcoming: They're searched at the airport, housed in Camp William, a National Guard facility 45 minutes from Salt Lake City, subjected to multiple criminal background checks and given an 11PM curfew.
Many locals see no problem, for reasons that range from painfully naïve to overtly racist; Salt Lake City resident Ernie Ely recalls working for a year in New Orleans, and being horrified that it was crawling with undereducated criminals who drink too much. But the newcomers also find strong advocates in individuals like Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, who encourages listeners of his Mormon-supported radio show to reach out to the new arrivals, even after it costs him his job. For their part, the evacuees grow frustrated and resentful: They're uncomfortable in Mormon churches – most are Baptist – discomfited by the racial homogeneity, resentful that they can't find work (often because of old arrest records) and in many cases suffering post-traumatic stress syndrome. Two-thirds of the New Orleanians either returned home or moved back to other Louisiana and Texas cities. Andrews and the Curtises are among those who decide to try to make new lives in Utah, and LeMay follows them through highs and lows: Both men are haunted by histories of drug addiction, and Curtis' job search is hindered by a 1983 burglary conviction; Williams eventually tires of Andrews' relapses and leaves him, taking the children, while Gwendolyn stands by Curtis.
LeMay avoids pat conclusions and sanctimonious commentary, allowing people's stories to speak for themselves; the result is by turns sad, infuriating, frustrating and cautiously hopeful. leave a comment --Maitland McDonagh