On August, 29, 2021, the 16th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans and its surrounding parishes in Southeast Louisiana were devastated by Hurricane Ida, a Category 4 hurricane. Hurricane Ida displaced hundreds of thousands of Louisiana's small businesses, leaving many left with flooded properties and without power, food and other essential resources. Many business owners and their families were forced to either evacuate to other cities across the country or shelter in place and seek government provided temporary housing.
As the people of Louisiana begin to recover in the weeks and months to come, there will be many resources deployed to assist in the recovery efforts. Yet, we have seen time and time again that those resources don't always reach the most critically affected. Maroon's focus will be to ensure that these resources are distributed equitably to the most vulnerable communities among us. This is what true resilience looks like. Against the backdrop of a national reckoning with racial injustice, paired with a global pandemic that saw Black and Brown communities predominantly most critically impacted, our focus will be on offering resources through a seamless process that will empower and position our Black and Brown small business community in a way that will move them from recovery to resilience. Our focus will be on rooting out inequities that take shape as barriers and challenges to prosperity for Black and Brown small businesses. We will tackle the most urgent social justice and equity issues and advance legal, policy, and cultural changes that are our critical pathways to resilience.
ABOUT MAROON, INC. - Maroon is an ally for communities, advocates, experts and organizations who fight for equity. We ensure that equity remains a matter of ongoing concern – not just a trend or buzz word. We take on issues that are central to the lives of our most vulnerable communities through public policy, research and accountability.