When the Storm Comes: Why Black Communities Can’t Rely on FEMA This Hurricane Season
It’s not just the weather we need to worry about this summer—it’s Washington.
With hurricane season at our doorstep, a quiet emergency is brewing that could devastate communities already living on the edge. At the heart of it is FEMA—the very agency meant to help us when the winds roar and the waters rise. Right now, FEMA is broke, broken, and being politically bludgeoned, and it's Black communities that stand to lose the most.
“FEMA is going to fail this summer.”
That’s not hyperbole. That’s a direct quote from Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Florida Democrat who used to run the state’s emergency management. He sounded the alarm in a recent House Rules Committee hearing, warning that due to Trump-era funding freezes and bureaucratic mismanagement, FEMA may not be able to function when disaster strikes.
States are heading into hurricane season without knowing if they’ll even get federal disaster declarations. Cities can’t move money because they don’t know if they’ll be reimbursed. It’s paralysis by policy—and it’s dangerous.
“We’re trying to make FEMA faster,” Moskowitz said. “Instead, they’ve turned it into Newark Airport—it’s going to fail this summer.”
And let’s be real: when FEMA fails, it’s Black folks who suffer first and hardest.
Leadership Vacuum + Budget Cuts = A Perfect Storm
Under the current administration, FEMA is unraveling:
Sixteen senior officials with decades of experience just quit.
The agency's strategic plan focused on equity and climate resilience? Scrapped.
A proposed $646 million budget cut is on the table.
The Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program—which could have helped vulnerable neighborhoods withstand future storms—has been killed off.
The new acting FEMA chief? No experience in emergency management. It’s like handing the keys to an ambulance to someone who doesn’t know how to drive.
Meanwhile, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem (yes, that Kristi Noem) has been accused of using FEMA like a piggy bank for unrelated agencies. The result? The very programs designed to make disaster response faster and fairer are being hollowed out.
The Risk Is Real—and Personal
Moskowitz warned that if FEMA fails, it won’t just be an administrative nightmare. It’ll be financial ruin.
“Without FEMA, Louisiana goes bankrupt. Mississippi goes bankrupt. Alabama goes bankrupt,” he said. And for Black folks living in those states, where poverty rates are already higher and infrastructure is weaker, it could mean years of displacement, unemployment, and trauma.
Honoring Their Memory
A joint celebration of life for Alexus and JR was held on May 21 at East Feliciana STEAM Academy, where Alexus had been a dedicated educator. The ceremony served as a testament to their love, commitment, and the indelible impact they had on their community.
What Do We Do Now?
Let’s be clear: waiting for a broken system to save us has never been our move. And we can’t start now.
Here’s how we prepare:
Get Local: Connect with community-based organizations doing disaster prep work. Black churches, mutual aid networks, and grassroots organizers have always led in times of crisis.
Push Policy: Demand your local reps fight to restore FEMA’s budget and independence. The call to move FEMA out of DHS is gaining steam—support it.
Tell Our Stories: Don’t wait for mainstream media to cover our pain. Share what’s happening in your neighborhood, your family, your city. Our visibility is our power.
Plan Ahead: Know your evacuation routes, stock emergency supplies, and check on elders and neighbors. We can’t afford to be caught unprepared.
Final Word: We Know the Storm Is Coming
Our history is filled with storms—literal and metaphorical. And through every one, we’ve survived, rebuilt, and resisted.
But this time, the federal safety net is unraveling right before our eyes. FEMA may be failing, but we don’t have to. If anything, now’s the time to double down on our strength, our community, and our collective voice.
Because if the government won’t save us, we’ll save each other—just like we always have.
Stay ready. Stay loud. Stay connected.
💬 What’s your community doing to prepare for hurricane season? Drop it in the comments. Let’s share tools, resources, and game plans.
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