NEW ORLEANS – Explosive comments from the former recovery director in New Orleans seem to be reigniting the controversy that often surrounded his office. Ed Blakely has only been gone a few months, but he's now calling New Orleanians lazy and racist.
An eccentric man known for grandiose promises.
"By September, we hope to have cranes in the skyline," Blakely promised in March 2007.
Controversy over Blakely's performance seemed to follow him out the door when he left his post last summer, but a new interview is bringing back a bitter spotlight as Blakely discusses race in New Orleans.
"Everyone's a racist," Blakely told CalTV, the online news show run by students at the University of California-Berkeley. "It's part of something we have in this country, but it's deeper and more viral and more visible and entrenched in New Orleans than any place I've seen."
The comments are now raising eyebrows and frustration within New Orleans political circles.
"If he felt that way, one, he was in a position to address the issue and effectively do something about it," said Dr. Silas Lee, political analyst. "To make such a broad sweeping generalization is extremely unprofessional.”
It was late August when the 20-year-old Berkeley senior, Yaou Dou, interviewed Blakely. The former recovery czar's comments were bold and grim.
"There is a sense now in the white community – there's blood in the water," said Blakely. "They can recapture the political apparatus and kind of put their foot back on black people's throats and that will be explosive and very dangerous. I think unless the next mayor is very clever it's going to explode and there will be race riots in New Orleans."
"I guess that'll happen right after Ed Blakely’s cranes in the sky happen," Eyewitness News Political Analyst Clancy DuBos said jokingly.
A very candid Blakely also said he regrets not leaving his post earlier.
"My health wasn't good and, secondly, I had other things I wanted to do and administering a recovery is not one of them."
Blakely self described uneasiness in his final months in New Orleans did not come as a shock to members of the City Council.
"We have been very anxious pushing for a sense of urgency, it never came and those comments explain why that never came," said Councilwoman Cynthia Willard-Lewis. "Unfortunately, Dr. Blakely's expertise is writing books, not leading recovery."
"Basically he raped the city," said Lee. "He took us for granted, he took the money and didn't deliver."
Blakely now blames the slow recovery process on the people of New Orleans.
"They had never expected to do it themselves," said Blakely.
"He's not a New Orleanian," said City Council President Arnie Fielkow. "He was here for a few years, I don't think you can cast a wide net in terms of aspect and personality of our citizens."
And when asked if New Orleans would be still be around in 100 years, Blakely added "forces of nature are such that it's unlikely."
In a telephone interview with Eyewitness News Anchor Eric Paulsen, Blakely said he stands by his words and adds that it's "time to stop bi***ing, and get to work."
Yaou Dou, the Berkeley senior who sat down with Blakely, was an intern in the New Orleans Recovery Office during the summer of 2008.
Anonymous said on November 3, 2009 at 5:05 AM
What a moron!
pwmmc said on November 3, 2009 at 5:11 AM
My husband would call Blakely a "Camp Street" jerk: ALL ONE WAY!
Anonymous said on November 3, 2009 at 5:52 AM
Blakely is utterly incompetent. His lies, failure to perform and outright thievery are all telling about his lack of character. Blakely is the racist. He is that kind of racist filth that when his own incompetence is brought out - tries to deflect attention from his own failures by making false accusations about others. A complete disgrace and utter failure is Mr. Blakely.
commentstrue said on November 3, 2009 at 7:00 AM
Blakely has proven to just like his boss nagin. Deceitful, liar, deceptive, and hurting people with his racial comments. He is black and is calling his black people lazy and racial. His comments keep racism alive and going. I think he should practice what he preaches.
no2ftwdiva said on November 3, 2009 at 7:40 AM
Wow...You know as much as i wish Blakley hadn't said these things, there is a lot of truth to what he said. We can see it daily right here in the comments on news stories. I can't even try to think of the number of stories written here that have NOTHING to with the color of someone's skin being twisted into a race issue. And OMG when it has ANYTHING to do with crime we point out how it all the fault of the Black community (and now the Hispanic community can be included in this negitive race equation) It think it's the fact that our "dirty laundry" is out there for the world to know that make us so angry.
Anonymous said on November 3, 2009 at 8:20 AM
The man has evidently spent too much time swinging from all of those cranes he imagined in the sky.
Anonymous said on November 3, 2009 at 8:30 AM
I do not feel anger over his comments, but rather I feel utter pity towards him. His only excuse for not delivering on his promises and for failing as a czar (which means he was supposed to be a LEADER in the recovery) is that it is racism and the big bad white man is destroying the black folk. That is a pathetic excuse for failing as a recovery leader. Instead of rallying the troops to clean up and rebuild, he did absolutely nothing except take our money, and then blames us for his lack of leadership. He is truly a man that deserves our pity, not our anger.
Anonymous said on November 3, 2009 at 8:30 AM
Look at the source of the statement a non productive failure. gene belanger
mrglockster said on November 3, 2009 at 8:38 AM
BLAME IT ON WHITEY OFCOURSE.
dixiemae said on November 3, 2009 at 8:39 AM
Sounds like he hit the "nail on the head".The "800lb gorilla in the room"speaks.Everybody see's it but nobody wants to talk about it.There is so much corruption hurting everyone.There is so much work to be done there should be no unemployment.But what do I know about the complex relationships in New Orleans.If only the people who were born here understand the problems why don't they fix them?
catsyd2 said on November 3, 2009 at 9:15 AM
Blakley always had an inflated opinion of himself. However, I'm sorry to say he hit the nail on the head about the employees in City Hall speaking poorly ,rude manner while helping citizens and resentful of taking instructions from a white supervisor. Blakley was hired to lead the recovery of New Orleans. He was a dismisal failure. He should not cast stones before examing his own shortcomings. He may be educated and use words to his advange but ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS -- Blakely produced to action to expedite the recovery of New Orleans. As far as racism in the City of New Orleans he really has the wrong picture. I am a lifelong resident of New Orleans and feel we co-exist much better than most. The crime rate is higher for the black population but the black population is larger than the white population. Nagin has made many mistakes but hiring Blakey and giving him a much larger salary than he deserved was his biggest mistake.
rhettswife said on November 3, 2009 at 10:02 AM
Sometime back we made a proposal and included some valuable listing of rights and responsibilities. We have been trying to post our feelings about Mr. Blakely but without success. We hope that he can see what we proposed andd prove to him that many, many people of many ancestries do care. In fact he should read some scholarly texts which show the extent of racism in various forms in this city. We stated earlier: 5. We can no longer allow the issue of race and color to determine the future of this city. We must come together as one family for the good of all. 6. We must provide for a government of the people and for the people. This means that the government of this city (indeed of this state) must be overhauled in order to assure that it is streamlined, cost efficient, and provide respectful and quality services to all people of this city. This includes all levels of government including assessors, the court system, the police system, etc.
ingano said on November 3, 2009 at 10:14 AM
Can he give back his salary?
Anonymous said on November 3, 2009 at 11:07 AM
There is no question that racism keeps this city from achieving its potential; that issue holds everyone back, whether they be White, Black, Hispanic, Asian or Native American. What Blakely failed to fully comprehend is that there are two issues that the City continues to face: the 1st issue is the state of triage that the City found itself after being completely destroyed by the floods from breached levees; that issue remains the primary responsibility of Nagin and continues to be largely unaddressed. the 2nd issue is the long-term community planning for the City; that is only what Blakely worked on...the theoretical question of what the City might look like. Blakely is very comfortable with the academic exercise of planning for a city's future development in non-triage situations; he has not demonstrated any skills working in an environment such as post-Katrina New Orleans. But the suggestion of race riots is inflammatory, irresponsible and self-serving; he is not our Savior.
Anonymous said on November 3, 2009 at 11:08 AM
What an IDIOT!!! The more he speaks, the worse he looks. Hmm- remind you of another RACIST we know?
thejassman said on November 3, 2009 at 11:22 AM
Racism...what a word...
sassiloni said on November 3, 2009 at 12:16 PM
As unfortunate as it is, Mr. Blakely is right. Just reading through the comments left here on WWL under different stories you can visibly see the racism that still plague our state and our country even. There are still racist people throughout these "United" states, most of white America cannot see the color line because you made or established the line. After Katrina the water line was not the only line you could see, above the dirty water line was white citizens and below the water line was everybody else.
truthteller said on November 3, 2009 at 12:24 PM
Blakely is a racist and a buffoon. He is clearly mentally ill - and needs to be in-patient in a psychiatric facility. He also needs to be sued for defamation.
sawbino said on November 3, 2009 at 12:29 PM
The problems with this city are the fault of the voters. The voters of this city have elected the same party for decades with the idea that they, the voters, will get something for nothing. It is clearly a case of the nonproductive versus the productive. I doubt that the voters will ever wake up and realize that it is their voting habits that have caused all of the problems here. Stop voting for democrats. Stop voting for crooks. The voters of this city have elected nothing but crooks, thieves, liars and scoundrels! WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!
jaywhy said on November 3, 2009 at 12:49 PM
He should be sued for not fulfilling his contract. He was hired to lead the recovery. What did he do?
try2see said on November 3, 2009 at 1:26 PM
When Nagin said "the city would be chocolate" he was called racist. Now when Blakely says everybody is racist all of a sudden nobody's a racist, it's all inflammatory speech. Can't any of you see the man called it like he saw it? I wish Rev, Avery Alexander was still alive,he could explain that it was racism... that is still here today,that dragged him down the steps of city hall when he wanted to eat at the lunch counter there. But somebody would say that wasn't racist either. What is so bad about admitting there are racist people in New Orleans? NATIVE NEW ORLEANIANS? You don't want to face yourself?
imbacklol said on November 3, 2009 at 1:33 PM
heres EXACTLY what blakley means................................................ from the NOE room on NOLA.COM............................ 23360. Baskin Robbins/Pizza Stop by leapavi69, 11/3/09 10:52 ET Opening next month! Make sure you support these businesses being that they are owned by our own people. This goes for KFC/Taco Bell, Mc Donalds, Basking Robbins, Burger King etc... if someone white said something like this they would be called a RACIST
youknowimright said on November 3, 2009 at 1:41 PM
this is guy is an idiot. i hope he never comes back to our city.
redjc said on November 3, 2009 at 5:28 PM
I am a native New Orleanian and I have to agree with Ed Blakely. The truth hurts but its still the truth. Be as a city need to change and as a state be need to be a better place to make a living.
macarpen said on November 3, 2009 at 6:02 PM
sassiloni said "After Katrina the water line was not the only line you could see, above the dirty water line was white citizens and below the water line was everybody else." The fact that more African American's were left below the water line is because the population of African Amercian's in New Orleans was 67.4% - that is almost 7 out of every 10 people who were African American, so naturally more African Americans were going to suffer. I saw NUMEROUS reports where elderly Caucasians were stuck in their attics, and swimming to safety. I am sorry that you saw it as the "white man ignoring the black man"-- it is like the bridge incident- there were numerous "white" people trying to cross that bridge also who were denied entry, but all we focus on is the wrongs done to the "black folk". Time to get out of the 1950's and focus on the year 2009. We were ALL done wrong, regardless of skin color. "I am black so I am a victim" time is over. Personal Responsibility time is here.
owwjr said on November 3, 2009 at 8:55 PM
i have no problem with mr blakely statements . the truth shall inded set u free. u have only to remember those ugly scences from I-10 after katrina n see where we were then n read the comments here to see we have not progressed any. i love my city n state cause it is home ,but we r stuck in the past with our racial attitudes.not just one race but both, black n white. n until we decide that progress will only happen if we both work together in unity for the greater good will we continued to be portrayed as dr. blakely did.
contrahypocrisy said on November 3, 2009 at 9:00 PM
Where did Nagin find Blakely? Seriously, does anyone know? How did he get selected to be the Recovery Czar of this City that he doesn't even believe will be around in 100 years? How was he vetted?
contrahypocrisy said on November 3, 2009 at 9:04 PM
Why did Nagin select Blakely as this city's Recovery Czar? How was he selected to led the recovery of a city he doesn't even believe will be around in 100 years? Seriously, does anyone know the answer? How was he vetted? Was the City Council involved at all? How did Nagin come to know of him? Who hired him?
sassiloni said on November 5, 2009 at 2:41 PM
First off macarpen, I meant that statement figuratively not literally, it was a comparative statement. Meaning like the color line the water line divided the masses into two groups based on that line. Of course I know that caucasians were "left behind" after Katrina, one of my best friends (who just happens to be caucasian) stayed behind and was stuck. And no ones harping on the fact that every African-Americian in this city, state even these "United" states has been subjected to racism in some form or fashion at some point in their lives a reality. And yes, I would love to "get out of the 50's" and in the present but it is impossible to do when I am seen by my skin color first and not as a human being first, or constantly reminded that I am of color. The truth really hurts when it is spoken and the truth is "RACISM STILL EXISTS!" Now if you don't see it, it's because your not in the demographic being targeted or you just don't want to see it. Now your personal responsibility is to...
sassiloni said on November 5, 2009 at 2:42 PM
WAKE THE HELL UP!!!!!