New Orleans and Graham County are obvious opposites.
But they have some points in common, including a high poverty rate and lack of affordable housing. But there is a deeper connection, a philosophical bent that goes deeper than mere demographics.
Residents of Graham County and New Orleans share a reverence for the past, a dissatisfaction with the present and a fear of the future, that manifest as a knee-jerk resistance to change.
My favorite New Orleans joke applies to Graham County as well: How many New Orleanians does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Twelve: One to replace the bulb and eleven to stand around talking about how they liked the old light bulb better than the new one.
The punch line could apply to Graham County as well as it does New Orleans.
After Hurricane Katrina, one of the biggest fears New Orleanians had was that all that death and destruction might result in change. Change for the better. Change for the worse. It did not really matter. The fear was of change itself.
Against nearly impossible odds, New Orleans managed to put on a nearly-normal carnival season just six months after Katrina hit. The message was, “If we keep doing like we’ve always done, things will be like they’ve always been.”
Of course, the opposite was true. Nothing was really the same, but Mardi Gras had to happen. New Orleanians needed that reassurance – at least the illusion of safety and sameness – and they found it in maintaining tradition.
When urban planners suggested rebuilding the city in a way that would avoid future floods – but would compromise existing neighborhoods – New Orleanians refused outright, like a toddler rejecting a mouthful of food.
No, no and no. There is power in saying no. Not just power, but there is a pleasure in it, too.
Saying yes, granting permission, agreeing, there is power there, too. But that power is based in compromise, generosity and confidence.
Saying yes is about faith. It is about placing a bet, taking a chance. Yes feels good, but it can also feel soft. Easy.
But saying no can feel like pulling rank. Denying a request is an exercise in power and control and it can also make a person feel like royalty.
And like New Orleanians, Graham County folks are particularly good at no.
No to alcohol. No to Corridor K.
Just no.
Even though people complain about the status quo, any suggestion of change tends to be met with a solid shake of the head.
Are these refusals knee-jerk reactions or rejections based on fact? How many of us make our decisions based on a desire to put on the brakes, maybe even to go back in time?
New Orleanians will continue to parade and party, feast and fest as the water rises around them – in either constant denial or stoic acceptance of their fate – but comfortable in the knowledge that at least the city has not changed.
I hope for better for Graham County.
Robbi Pounds is the staff writer for The Graham Star. She can be reached by phone, 479-3383 or email, rpounds@grahamstar.com.