This is what I found particularly unsettling:
"You don't want to know what it was like. We had killings, abortions, babies born, toilets stacked up and it was hot, hot, hot." Pressed for details, she doesn't hesitate. She speaks of two girls being raped and murdered inside the dome, one aged seven. The other was 16 and was "slit open" by a knife after she was raped in the woman's bathroom, she says. Much of what she tells is similarly described by several other dome evacuees. A boy aged seven was also raped by two men. (Mr Allen says the rapist was chased down by other men and beaten before being handed over to the soldiers. He claims they also beat him and then threw him from a terrace outside the Superdome to the asphalt, killing him.)An alleged rapist, is not given a trial, no jury, but is sentenced to immediate execution? How inhumane. Now I don't think too kindly of rapists, but what about a person's basic human rights?
What is this, Nazism?
[Ed. Note: The title of this post has been edited after I had been informed that I cited the wrong stadium.]
3 comments:
I've been hearing about this stuff for days :(
BTW, the atrocities are NOT happening in the Astrodome in Houston, TX so far as I know. The events you mention happened in the Superdome in New Orleans, LA. The people of Houston had a few days to prepare cots, food, water, medical care, showers, and phone communication. The people in the Superdome didn't. It was get in or drown. The Superdome is apparently surrounded by water. It's being evacuated a little at a time to give the people in Houston time to take care of people as they come in.
People have been arriving here in Austin too - being put up in our convention center.
Gah! MC Fro winds up with egg on his face.
Yes, I was referring to the Superdome in New Orleans. I stand corrected.
I should spend a little more time researching my sources. I was skimming the article quickly or the proper material to quote.
I will also attest this to being quite exhausted today.
I am hoping that those in refugee camps in Austin, as well as other locations are being treated better, and that they all find relatives, friends, and proper shelter. Camping in a stadium for a week is not my idea of a good time.
It is obvious that desperation is settling into those who are holed up in the Superdome. People need privacy; people need their personal space. It is taxing on the mental health of these refugees (these poor living conditions).
As the world population continues to explode, I expect that we are going to see more tragedies like I have mentioned in the wake of natural disasters. I may as well include war and terrorism to the list.
Aww, don't feel bad. When I woke up to my clock radio blaring a few days ago with news about it, I got them confused too.
When they said the area around the "Superdome" was flooded, I lay there wondering "OMG, did Houston get flooded too?" (Just assuming the Superdome was another word for Astrodome).
Then they said something about how they're getting people out quietly, a few at a time, trying to avoid a stampede for the buses to be moved to the Astrodome. Then I realized the Superdome must be in New Orleans (and of course I know where the Astrodome is 'cause I've been there and driven past it a few times).
They're being treated better in other places. There's food available, they aren't surrounded by the ocean (which contributed to their restroom problems). It's still "camping" though ... in a large stadium in the case of the Astrodome. It's just a lot more comfortable.
They're still short on blankets here. It's not through a lack of people willing to give money and supplies. It seems to be a logistical thing. Maybe we got more people than expected.
I didn't hear that bedding was an issue until this morning. Before, the requests were for water, cereal bars, tuna, diapers, and peanut butter. Now they're asking for a variety of food at the food bank (although money is preferred, I think).
I'm not sure that I'd blame excess population for this so much as poor planning. It's really making me think about how important it is for individuals to be aware of safety issues regarding the area where they live.
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