With
winds
topping
140
miles
per
hour
as
it
roared
ashore,
Hurricane
Katrina
devastated
portions
of
the
Gulf
Coast
and
New
Orleans
on
Aug.
29,
2005.
From
early
news
reports,
it
appeared
the
gay-friendly
French
Quarter
in
the
Big
Easy
was
spared
from
catastrophic
damage.
However,
two
subsequent
levee
breaks
along
Lake
Pontchartrain
flooded
a
city
that
traditionally
would
be
gearing
up
to
host
thousands
of
gays
celebrating
Labor
Day
weekend.
Official
events
were
canceled,
although
a
small
group
of
New
Orleans
residents
held
an
informal
Southern
Decadence
parade
that
became
a
symbol
of
the
city’s
resilience.
Southern
Decadence,
which
began
as
a
Labor
Day
celebration
among
friends
more
than
30
years
ago,
has
grown
to
a
six-day
event
attracting
more
than
100,000.
Philadelphia-based
Repent
America
issued
a
statement
calling
Hurricane
Katrina
an
“Act
of
God”
that
destroyed
a
“wicked
city”
just
days
before
Southern
Decadence.
Numerous
gay
and
straight
volunteers
worked
to
help
HIV/AIDS
patients
as
well
as
others
out
of
the
flooded
city
and
into
safe
spaces
including
Atlanta
and
Houston.
Last
weekend,
some
Southern
Decadence
events
were
held
before
a
mandatory
evacuation
of
New
Orleans
for
Hurricane
Gustav
caused
Sunday’s
parade
and
other
remaining
events
to
be
canceled.
Southern
Voice,
Sept.
2,
2005
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