Missionaries of the left, saviors are people of privilege who believe they have all the answers. They want to help, but don’t want to listen; they lead but never follow. From post-Katrina New Orleans, to anti-sex-traficking work, to do-gooder journalists, Flaherty’s book reveals saviors’ misdeeds but also shows how activists can build new, stronger movements.

Organizers, activists, artists and community members share their struggles in New Orleans before and after Hurricane Katrina.Floodlines is a firsthand account of community, culture, and resistance in New Orleans. The book weaves the stories of gay rappers, Mardi Gras Indians, Arab and Latino immigrants, public housing residents, and grassroots activists in the years before and after Katrina. From post-Katrina evacuee camps to torture testimony at Angola Pri...

"A perfect gift for the age of Trump." - Robin D. G. Kelley, Author, Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination"In this marvelous, enormously instructive book, Jordan Flaherty explores how we too often allow the struggle for change to be undermined by would-be saviors—and how today’s grassroots social movements, led by communities on the frontlines of crisis, are charting a far more powerful path forward." – Naomi Klein, Author, This Changes Everything and ...

Floodlines: Community and Resistance from Katrina to the Jena Six is firsthand journalism of struggles for justice and liberation in New Orleans. The book weaves together the stories of queer rappers, immigrant organizers, public housing residents, and grassroots activists in the years before and after Katrina. From post-Katrina evacuee camps and Angola Prison to the family members who laid the ground for Black Lives Matter, Floodlines is a people's history of a crucial time and p...