Melissa Harris-Perry
The home of Melissa Harris-Perry was destroyed by Hurricane Isaac August 29.
While Hurricane Isaac largely bypassed Tampa where the Republican National Convention is being held, it is impacting residents elsewhere along the Gulf Coast, including one of MSNBC's own, Melissa Harris-Perry.
The host of her eponymous weekend show tweeted a photo of her recently purchased New Orleans house, which was destroyed by the hurricane sometime early Wednesday morning. "Feeling sad... All safe. House was vacant except for my dreams," she wrote.
Harris-Perry, also a professor at Tulane University, and her husband purchased the home in New Orleans' Seventh Ward just a month ago. She discussed her reasons for the purchase just this weekend on her show.
She and her family live across the street. "I decided it was time to enact my own extreme makeover," Harris-Perry said in a video tour broadcast on her program. The couple's plan was to renovate the house, "bring it back to life, and contribute to the safety and security” of their street. "It was a site of crime in the neighborhood," she added.
"Our goal was to renovate to eliminate the blight," tweeted her husband James H. Perry. "But Isaac did it for us."
The house, at purchase, only had one front wall and two side walls. The front wall still stands, but the back of the house collapsed due to the storm and fell on three cars, according to her husband.
MSNBC's Melissa Harris-Perry takes "Nerdland" on a tour around her home and neighborhood to share how New Orleans has changed since Hurricane Katrina.
Harris-Perry put the purchase and renovation in terms of the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the continued revitalization of the city, which is now living through another hurricane.
"This house is representative of New Orleans and what we’re facing since the storm," she said. "If you just glance at it, on one side you see all the destruction. If you pause and you look at the bones of it, what it represents— the pink paint that was a little girl’s bedroom at one point — you see that there is life here, just like there is like there is a lot of life left in the city.”
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The more one learns about Melissa Harris-Perry, the more one has to greatly respect, and like, who she is, and what she stands for.
This is a ridiculous, NON-story! The house was already in shambles. The woman is trying to draw attention to HERSELF and her renovation project, painting herself as the victim and a saint at the same time! So typical of liberal behavior.
Hey SS; You sound like you should be in Tampa with the rest of your one-sided buddies . This is a house a craftsmen can restore to its' natural beauty. If I had the ability I might give it a try to bring it back like a lot of peeps do and then rent it out for 1500.00 to 2,000.00 a month to peeps like you .
Melissa, things could have been worse. I'm glad you hadn't already renovated.
Yes, so typical of liberal behavior - trying to make the world a better place while enduring the ridicule of turds like yourself who would rather criticize instead of lending a hand.
yes so typical of right wing to criticize any story - at least what she was trying to do would have give people who desperately need work projects to work on - unlike our wonderful JOBS JOBS JOBS after we destroy women's rights and the poor right wing agenda in our Congress these days. At least she was honest about it :)
Stand Strong - My, my, aren't you the omniscient one!!! Do you know her personally? If not, you are merely pulling your opinion out of your A$$. Your response was snively, snide, uselessly opinionated, and most likely ignorant, therefore of no value to the human cause, and eliciting no surprise chastising comments from me and others here, ones you need to hear based on what you said.
I don't know, maybe you have some other human value, but, based simply on your response, it seems unlikely. Is it the color of her skin, her political views? In any case, don't waste our time with your petty drivel. Likewise, don't look for any sympathy should your house ever meet a similar fate.
You might consider changing your handle to "Stand Stupid" to be more accurate. Take some time this weekend and re-evaluate your soul from scratch.
Brad Pitt, Harry Connick Jr. and Sandra Bullock have all done reconstruction in New Orleans and Melissa Harris-Perry is doing the same. Stand Strong, I have a feeling you don't live in New Orleans. There is still a lot of reconstruction to be done and every project helps. I'll be the people who were flooded today would be grateful for any assistance they get.
Hey MJB we donate a lot to Home for Habitat and there local store. They love anything new or something they can recycle.
Good story, she is definitely an uplifting person with worthy plans that will help her community.
American Politics is in a mess, people please do not vote ontil your leaders come up with something better for the country, all you have is a bunch of old people telling you what to do its time for you to tell them how you feel, JUST DO NOT VOTE ON ELECTION DAY THE BALL IS IN YOUR COURT.
Everyone who can must vote, even if, in your opinion, it may be the lesser of two evils.
Vera, don't fall for that trick. Too many people died that we would have the right to vote. You have to look at the whole picture--even on the local level. If you don't like what you see, throw your hat in the ring, and let us hear what you have to say. This is a much better solution than to not be a part of the process and let someone else decide the fate of your country, your state, your county/parish, or your city.
Vera - really??? The politicians have been wonderful enough to ensure that regardless if you vote or not - someone WILL win the election! so the opposite is true in this case - get out and vote!!!!
What does your comment have to do with this story? Nothing!! Keep to the subject.
I think it's pretty cool that she brought an older home and was going to renovate it. I love seeing these old places taken back the original glory, I wish you the best Melissa.
A great response, Wendie!!!!!
Hey Lar Mar, Please don't judge all Republicans by one idiot. I'm sure there are a few of them in your party as well. I personally, would like to see a little more civility, and therefore discourse, between the parties. It seems that we should be able to agree to disagree, without so much hostility.
I agree wholeheartedly - the reason I am an independent voter is because I cannot stand either party - BUT I am also extremely tired of all the hatred and the me, me, me attitude - we are a community - and what is funny is all the ones who are spreading the hate are the first ones with their hands out for the government that they hate so much to fill - really people????
Everyone who can must vote, even if, in your opinion, it may be the lesser of two evils.
@Vera, don't fall for that old trick of not voting. Too many people died that we would have the right to vote. You have to look at the whole picture--especially on the local level. If you don't like what you see, throw your hat in the ring, and let us hear what you have to say. This is a much better solution than to not be a part of the process and let someone else decide the fate of your country, your state, your county/parish, or your city.
How completely twisted is the media?! I see this as a legit story...sorry that the home was destroyed. Really. However, the article loses all credibility when it opens with, "While Hurricane Isaac largely bypassed Tampa where the Republican National Convention is being held"...what the hell? Why doesn't the article open with, "While Hurricane Isaac largely bypassed President Obama playing golf"? The hurricane didn't head east toward Tampa...or up the east coast toward Washington DC. Why is the RNC even mentioned? David Chalian of ABC "jokes" about Republicans partying while blacks drown...good grief! There ARE white people and people of other ethnicities that live in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi coastal region who are suffering as well. The liberals are the racists in this country - evidenced by these this article and ABC. Shame on you if you aren't able to see through the crap the main stream media is shoving down your throat. THINK PEOPLE THINK FOR YOURSELVES!!!
If you could actually think for YOURSELF, there is no way you could associate yourself with a party that has become an enemy to the people, to Democracy and the American way. You have been brainwashed. As long as you continue to watch Fox exclusively, you will continue to be brainwashed and unable to make a reasonable choice of your own.
Hey Auburn...I applaude the effort but you're trying to make a point with those who can't see any side but their own (i.e. Ron Jackson's posting below it). I take comfort that when all the components of 'Atlas Shrugged' take hold the Ron's of this world will be behind us. And forgot about those 'white' people you're worried about...only blacks can be victims of racism / poor / downtrodden - the numbers don't matter, it doesn't count the other way. I find it humorous that the liberals aren't getting ANGRIER AND ANGRIER (read the posts on these sites) as they realize their message of Hope and Change has become about Despair and Worry. If everything their party had done over the last 'nearly' four years now worked...why isn't that the platform their running on? Smile...and watch the Ron's of the world crash and burn!
I am an extreme conservative who is sick of hearing both parties run down each other ... especially on a story that doesn't mean a hill of beans. NO has hundreds, if not thousands, of people living in abandoned buildings and shacks because Obama nor Bush nor the state nor city nor county got off their butts to help poor people. It is truly a SIN to do too little in a time when many, many people still live like animals in ruins. At the end of time, will you be comfortable telling the Lord you didn't do enough to help those who needed help.
I think its wonderful that she is/was taking the time, effort and money renovating an old home to bring back a neighborhood back to life. I wish her and her husband well in that endeavour.
dettie - Now that is the proper response to this!! Stand Strong, perhaps after this weekend's recommended soul searching will help pull such a response out of you. Especially if you are a Christian, but other religions will do, some moral guidance from within should make this easier.
dettie, In case you did not see Stand Strong's drivel above, please be certain the second part of my response to you was aimed at him/her, not you. You are obviously a well centered individual. Thank you for your generously human comment here!!
With only three walls standing, at purchase, the house was doomed.
SS... Currently,a lack sensitivity appears to represent "the pulse " of our country. For this reason, I feel such sorrow for you and those like you. I don't mean that we all have to be pussifiied. I believe in working for what you have and helping others when you can.
though her loss is sad she thankfully has the economic resources to rebuild. so many others, thousands do not and for them the future is dark and foreboding with little or no hope moving forward. i know people want to live on the gulf but every few years the slate gets wiped clean. homes destroyed, insurance companies deluged with claims, our fed gov flood insurance program is stretched to the brink and because we keep on building homes where sane people would not. if you build there along the coast you need at least decent building codes. california, japan(they've earthquakes and/or typhoons still same notion) for example, both ca and japan have very stringent codes which saves lives and money. mississippi sadly has NONE(hurricanes), alabama minimal, lousiana weak as well, with florida being the only one with half way decent building codes on the books right now. in the short run better, tougher building codes will cost more but in the long run they will save millions if not billions of dollars if instituted by all. most of us work our entire lives just to buy that one, the first and only home we will ever have and to lose it even if by an act of God is a horrible blow to endure, especially for mid and low income families. i wish the best to everyone struggling at this time, everyone regardless.
This is such a non-story. I'm not sorry the house she bought, that she would have to tear down anyway in order to restore it, fell down due to Isaac. Her intentions for rebuilding are admirable, however, this story is all about MSNBC putting their own name out their. What about all the people who lost their ONLY house and don't have the resources to restore their home. MSNBC you are better than these, please don't continue to disappoint. Thanks!
It's called a side story of interest. Nothing worthy of your comment. However, your apparent need to make a negative (even slightly) issue out of this is far more noteworthy. You can rest assured 99.99999999999% of the reporting has been on the larger stories of devistation and damage.
Those of us fortunate enough to be untouched by Isaac surely should show an over abundance of sympathy and empathy for those touched, no matter the degree. A lesson, I'm willing you would naturally give those two beautiful kids in your avatar.
All that is necessary for a black to do now is "fart", and to the liberal press it becomes a major "sh**". When will it end? Truth and integrity matter.
So does the "milk of human kindness", Terry. Take a sip!
If I owned this pre-destroyed house none of you would even be talking about it because it wouldn't be news worthy. Why don't you spend your time worrying about the people truly effected by Isaac. Better luck Melissa flippin' your next house purchase.
So sorry to see this great opportunity to restore an old New Orleans home lost before it could be saved.
Very sad, Melissa. I hope something of it is salvagable.
Our thoughts are with you and all the people who live in Hurricane Country.
Best wishes from Earthquake Country,
Gia