[Pink.]

ISLE DE JEAN CHARLES — With water as far as the eye can see in most directions, the threat of coastal erosion is obvious on the small island community of Isle de Jean Charles.

However, not all of its inhabitants may be aware that their home is disappearing.

“The drama of this story is that these children could be the last people here,” Jason Ferris said. “The community is very small compared to what it used to be due to land loss.”

Drivers on Island Road from Pointe-aux-Chenes to Isle de Jean Charles are often greeted by the sight of barefoot children fishing, riding bikes and playing.

They may be the last children to grow up on the island, which has been home to American Indian families for generations.

Nine children attended an informal class Wednesday afternoon presented by Communities on the Horizon and New Orleans-based Cottage Films.

The goal was to teach the children about the effects of coastal erosion in the wetlands of Louisiana and their home.

The film crew, including directors Rebecca Marshall Ferris and Jason Ferris and producer Kathleen Ledet, a Golden Meadow native, has been working on a documentary called “Can't Stop the Water” on Isle de Jean Charles for the last year and a half.

Communities on the Horizon is a website that was formed April 21, 2010, to provide resources to people affected by the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

“The community has done so much for us and we want to do as much as we can for them. We want to help build the next generation of activists,” Rebecca Ferris said. “Most of these children can trace the origins of their roots back to the island. They could be the last generation.”

The documentary tells the story of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw Indians through the lives of several island residents and focuses on some of the youngest.

“The drama of this story is that these children could be the last people here,” Jason Ferris said. “The community is very small compared to what it used to be due to land loss.”The children, Ledet said, will be forced to make the difficult choice that other Isle de Jean Charles families have faced.

“The children will have to make a decision about whether they want to stay or leave,” Ledet said. “Growing up in a community like this, the longer they know what's going on, the longer they will be able to plan their future.”

A wetland community advocate, Evan Ponder, led the class through discussions of wetland loss, pollution, conservation and activism.

Ponder, from Portland, Ore., is a wetland advocate for the Presbyterian Church USA. The First Presbyterian Church of Bayou Blue is hosting him.

“The one thing I want them to take away from the class is the understanding of how valuable and important their environment is and that they can be a part of preserving the wetlands,” Ponder said.

The Rev. Roch Naquin, a retired priest who lives on the island, hosted the class at his home.

“The island used to be so quiet but now it's filled with children laughing and playing,” Naquin said. “I am helping the young people come together to know about the environment and preserve our wetlands.”

During the class the children wrote letters to their state representative and gave opinions on coastal erosion and wetland preservation.

“It's important to save our wetlands because this is a beautiful place where you can fish, shrimp and crab,” said Lacey Ordoyne, 14.

They also expressed concern about losing the only place they've called home.

“I would be sad to move because I like living down here. There are a lot of kids to play with and it's fun to fish, swim and play football,” said Reggie Parfait, 8.
Other children told stories they have heard from family members.

“My uncle said you used to be able to walk to Montegut without getting your feet wet,” Howard Brunet, 9, said. “If you don't protect the wetlands then pollution and erosion will cause animals to die and, if they die, then what will we eat?”

[Pink.]

These boys might be the last generation here

[kellyhound]

Originally Posted by Pink. ↗

The Rev. Roch Naquin, a retired priest who lives on the island, hosted the class at his home.

hmmmm

[Arkoquisa]

do they have sand mining in Louisiana? it had killed my dearest river in Texas, ive even recently discovered in my research that 2-3 native settlements may have been torn up and ground into concrete, and no archeological work was done prior

[Pink.]

Originally Posted by Arkoquisa ↗

do they have sand mining in Louisiana? it had killed my dearest river in Texas, ive even recently discovered in my research that 2-3 native settlements may have been torn up and ground into concrete, and no archeological work was done prior

sand and silt mining.....MANY borrow pits just sitting around full of water .....death traps...
We lose our settlements because of coastal erosion mostly. Most borrow pits etc are privately owned and MANY (I wouldnt think all because THIS IS louisiana....shortcuts, corruption, and all).

[Pink.]

It's awful how Native settlements are destroyed...many times there ARE people that are still around that know of their locations, and the people just don't care.

[candymosh]

That sucks. Seems to be a lot of erosion going on. You'd think they would want to preserve those places as best they could.

[Sharon]

Land erosion, species under threat, oh it's all so sad

[Arkoquisa]

Originally Posted by Pink. ↗

It's awful how Native settlements are destroyed...many times there ARE people that are still around that know of their locations, and the people just don't care.

the only problem is im virtually one of only a hand full of people to study the natives, and spanish, of my area, nobody even knows who they were and nearly all decedents live in Louisiana so nobody at all knows except for some recent college grad historian who cant get a job because of county hiring freezes... but they still pump money into the god damned ghetto

[Pink.]

Originally Posted by Arkoquisa ↗

the only problem is im virtually one of only a hand full of people to study the natives, and spanish, of my area, nobody even knows who they were and nearly all decedents live in Louisiana so nobody at all knows except for some recent college grad historian who cant get a job because of county hiring freezes... but they still pump money into the god damned ghetto

Our area is a treasure trove of sites that are slowly washing away, and unless the so very FEW of us that are actually interested in the history, the preservation of any remaining sites, and most of all the documentation of these sites can come together in some organized manner, the boat will be missed.


The information is there, the descendants in many cases actually have documentation....sometimes sitting in an old attic. Lots of ruins, old cemeteries, old churches...It is overwhelmingly scattered, but that documentation is there. So much was lost during Katrina Rita and the more recent storms, but it's not all lost. What I would give to go through some of these old peoples "keepsakes". It requires time, money, energy, and determination.

as for the funds being pissed down a hole to shore up the ghettos...
Allowing the ghetto to exist (FESTER AND MATASTICISE) does nothing to advance any races or cultures existing there. The ghettos should be phased out by relocating the ghetto populace. What may seem culturally/racially insensitive would be the biggest movement into a more mainstream existence and thus an improved existence than ever before for more than one group. Change can and will be painful, but in the end, it would be looked back on in history as revolutionary. People don't see that. People see "the oppressed being herded by the establishment".