"He Held Their Lives in His Tiny Hands" - a good story out of NO for once

[GCP]

BATON ROUGE, La. — In the chaos that was Causeway Boulevard, this group of refugees stood out: a 6-year-old boy walking down the road, holding a 5-month-old, surrounded by five toddlers who followed him around as if he were their leader.

They were holding hands. Three of the children were about 2 years old, and one was wearing only diapers. A 3-year-old girl, who wore colorful barrettes on the ends of her braids, had her 14-month-old brother in tow. The 6-year-old spoke for all of them, and he told rescuers his name was Deamonte Love.

Thousands of human stories have flown past relief workers in the last week, but few have touched them as much as the seven children who were found wandering together Thursday at an evacuation point in downtown New Orleans. In the Baton Rouge headquarters of the rescue operation, paramedics tried to coax their names out of them; nurses who examined them stayed up that night, brooding.

Transporting the children alone was "the hardest thing I've ever done in my life, knowing that their parents are either dead" or that they had been abandoned, said Pat Coveney, a Houston emergency medical technician who put them into the back of his ambulance and drove them out of New Orleans.

snip

LA Times - it has a good ending

http://news.yahoo.com/s/latimests/20050905/ts_latimes/heheldtheirlivesinhistinyhands&printer=1

[Starbucks Anarchist]

1. What a beautiful story.

[crispini]

2. crying.

[carpediem]

3. incredible story - thanks. n/t

.

[2Design]

4. amazing story - thans for sharing that n/t

[laylah]

5. nominated!

[kdmorris]

6. Man

I really am just an emotional mess. After so many horror stories, so much pain, so much desperation, I find myself actually sobbing harder when I read stuff like this. It's almost uncontrollable.

I'm so happy for these families. I'm a mother. I can only imagine how hard it must have been for them to put those children on a helicopter, to save their lives, while not knowing how long it would be before you saw them again. And how wonderful it was to find out that they were alive and coming back. The only difference is that my children are older now (17, 15, and 13), so I know that they would be trying just as hard to find me as I would be to find them. It's harder when you have little babies and you worry that if you get separated, your children will tell the rescuers that your name is "Mommy".

[Applepie]

7. Nothing Touches me more

Than stories of children being reunited with their family. I cry sad tears for what they went through and tears of joy for being reunited. It is good to see some of the good stories but let's not let the media forget what the people went through for the lack of our governments response.

[I Have A Dream]

8. Wow - absolutely beautiful! Nominated! n/t

[Child_Of_Isis]

9. or that they had been abandoned ??

That's doubtful.

[B Calm]

14. That comment was not needed! No one knew the story, so why?

[NorthernSpy]

54. because casually slandering blacks is second nature to some...

... as we've seen time and again over the past week.

[July]

10. So a helicopter separated them from their parents --

and then what happened? How did they end up on their own when their parents thought the helicopter was delivering them to safety?

[I Have A Dream]

18. Click on the link at the bottom of the original post to read the...

entire story.

[SaveAmerica]

32. Remember the helicopters were bringing the people from the

rooftops to the freeway and leaving them there, where they they knew the Red Cross and masses of National guard would provide them with water, food, and a safe way out of the city. Here is the first time I use this:

:sarcasm:

[hyphenate]

11. How wonderful!

I'm so glad. It's the stories like this that will haunt and surprise us for many years. They can't make up for the bad stuff, but we at least know that some good has come in the midst of all the tragedy.

[Justice]

12. Assumption that maybe abandoned makes me sad/angry

I wonder if anyone would make that assumption if the children were white?

[justiceischeap]

16. I also didn't like the insinuation

That because they were black, they wouldn't have been cared for.

"The children were clean and healthy — downright plump in the case of the infant, said Joyce Miller, a nurse who examined them. It was clear, she said, that "time had been taken with those kids." The baby was "fat and happy."

It just goes to show the underlying stereotype/racism in this country when it comes to minorities.

[sojourner]

43. I was thinking the same thing. Pisses me off....

Why in the hell would anyone make such an assumption in the face of such a terrible disaster? Some people are so smug and self-satisfied that it's disgusting...but I am glad they were there to help. Hope this was a real wake up call for them.

[tjdee]

17. That pissed me off too.

What kind of monster would abandon their children?

Why, black people of course!
:grr:

[chalky]

13. Oh, man. Tears (of joy) with that one.

:cry:

[Solly Mack]

15. I'm bawling

[Booster]

19. What a nice story and thank God a happy ending. Some of the

kids that have been on TV just rip your heart out.:cry:

[Sabriel]

20. Let me get this straight...

They evacuated them by helicopter and then left them to fend for themselves? That's what it sounds like, if they were on Causeway Boulevard in a group. Does this make sense to anyone?

[LisaL]

25. That's what it sounds like.

[sojourner]

44. None of this makes any sense to me.

The whole "rescue" effort, while it did end up saving lives, seems to me to have been so badly planned and carried out as to have certainly cost many lives as well:

People were repeatedly shuttled to NOWHERE and left without food/water to wait for some nonexistent rescue vehicle.

Take children without parents? WTF is that about? Bullshit bullshit bullshit.

[txindy]

46. Surely they could've sent one of those parents with those children

The chopper was supposed to return for all of the adults, so why couldn't ONE of those parents have been allowed to accompany the kids?!

This is so, so deeply wrong. Thank God Diamonte has an excellent head on his shoulders and a great deal of courage. And thank God the smaller ones listened to him.

[SammyWinstonJack]

21. I can't even imagine.

:cry: So glad these little O8) were reunited with their mom. :hug: I hope all the little ones will be, soon. :grouphug:

[meganmonkey]

22. Wow

:cry: :)

It's good to know that for some people there will be happy endings

[Walt Starr]

23. Just another example of life here in Yeronyerownistan. nt/

[KyndCulture]

24. What a brave little boy... *crying* nt.

[OneBlueSky]

27. must be one remarkable kid . . . maybe he'll run for president someday . .

matter of fact, if we elected him next week we'd probably be better off than we are now . . .

[qanda]

26. The only heartless person to abandon these kids

Is our ridiculous government!!!!! Who would leave those young children to fend for themselves and not show back up to get their mothers? This story, although it has a good ending, enrages me to no end. Why is the first assumption that black children wouldn't be happy or well cared for? My black mother raised five girls all by herself and we didn't have much, but there wasn't a person that would have ever said that we weren't happy or cared for. I'm sorry, maybe I've just had enough of the low expectations that are set for my people. We certainly have a long way to go in this country.

[katinmn]

30. I'm shocked that the writer assumed abandonment

and I concur with other posters that it resulted from the writer's own prejudice.

When I read the opening lines I immediately thought these chldren had been separated from their parents because of the chaos and the ineptitude of the authorities.

I'm glad the reporter covered the story but she needs to go back to school.

[tblue37]

33. Hi, qanda.

I read the original story and post and then responded in outrage before reading the rest of the thread. Now that I have read all the responses, I see that you had exactly the same reaction I did. It astonishes me that so many people don't realize what a "bad" story this is!

[qanda]

57. I didn't even get a chance to read through all the responses yesterday

The board was moving so fast and I lost this thread, but I'm so glad that I wasn't the only one who saw through this story. I've heard so many comments around here and in the media that let me know, we really have a long way to go in country, we have a long way to go.

[Desertrose]

28. Notice thier names were LOVE and the boy who led them was Diamond Love?

Deamonte Love...


Its a reminder that LOVE is what is gonna get us through this....

what a wonderful story...I LOVE happy endings!!!

[AverageJoe]

29. Crying

I'm sitting here with my two year old son and crying for these children and for us all.

[tblue37]

31. Not precisely a "good" story.

The story, though it has a happy ending, really bothers me. It’s only a “good” story in that it ends happily rather than in tragedy.

If these tiny children were evacuated, why the hell were they wandering around by themselves? Why weren’t they being taken care of by adults after having been evacuated? You would not pick up a stray kitten and then dump it to survive on its own, and yet the adults who evacuated all these babies left them to wander around by themselves. What’s with that??!!

And on top of that, the rescuers never came back for the parents, after promising they would.

[LisaL]

36. We already know after being rescued these people were

dropped somewhere else. It's obvious the same happened here, and the helicopter dropped those little ones off without any adults to look after them.

[sojourner]

45. you nailed it! n/t

[Bernardo de La Paz]

34. Bush: No Child Left Behind, except New Orleans

[malaise]

35. Lovely

Hope they find family.

[rosesaylavee]

37. Nominated!!

:cry:

[wiley]

38. Maybe you're not getting the point here

At first they thought they had found the mother when someone else who was looking for seven children was identified. She was looking for seven other children. Many parents had life or death choices to make about their kids, as well as other members of their family. Wouldn't you give your children to someone with a helicopter? The real outrage is that there weren't enough helicopters to take everyone together. The incompetent, criminal f*ckheads in this administration should be in jail - say, in downtown NO.

[txindy]

39. God bless Deamonte Love and the six little ones he saved.

A six-year-old who has more sense and compassion than the resident of the WH.

[Rainscents]

40. That 6 year took charge... Look at Bush, he can't fucking handle anything!

This story is very heart warming story! I am amaze they way 6 year old took care of those babies!

[txindy]

41. Here's a photo of the little hero, himself...

A handsome young man he is, too! Way to go, Diamonte! :applause:

http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PubCaseSearchServlet?act=viewPoster&caseNum=k00004&orgPrefix=NCMU&searchLang=en_US

Still being held in his big brother's protective arms:

http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PubCaseSearchServlet?act=viewPoster&caseNum=k00005&orgPrefix=NCMU&searchLang=en_US

[sojourner]

47. thanks for posting these pix! Lovely looking children....n/t

[GoddessOfGuinness]

50. What precious children...

I'll bet their mom and dad are very proud of their brave little boy. :loveya:

[Cha]

56. They are too Adorable for

description! What a Hero with Big Brown Eyes!

[fortyfeetunder]

42. Gross incompentence again

Why would 7 very young children be evacuated without one adult? This is a grossly incompetent.

But I am so glad the kids were reunited with their parents.

[Extend a Hand]

48. a hero.

kicked and another nomination.

[LeahD]

49. Please pass this on. When we are assaulted

by tragedy, it's good to read about a happy ending.

[Catherine Vincent]

51. Here's a pic of one of the babies:

:hug: :loveya:

[walldude]

52. Kid of the year!

Made this for him...



NP Cat!

[Catherine Vincent]

53. Thanks for the correction, dude.

:)

[Cha]

55. How Poignant! People

wanting to make sure their children could live. Such a horrible test and they Passed with Flying Colors!