Why does society tend to give those with the most need, the least attention and care?

In class today we began to watch a documentary on Hurricane Katrina and it's impact on people's lives and the factors that lead to the grand damage of the city of New Orleans. I thought it was really interesting to hear the testimony of those who were present during the hit of Katrina. I learned a few things I hadn't known before such as the fact that Hurricane Katrina didn't actually HIT the city of New Orleans, meaning the center of the storm, where it was actually category five missed the city and moved towards the east. As I heard this, I asked myself how much more devastating the storm would have been to the city of New Orleans, which in my opinion was not prepared to face a natural disaster as was the one that actually hit it.

So that brings me to the question that I want to explore in this post. Why is it that not just necessarily in society, but in general, those groups that are the least well off are the ones that must endure and suffer the toughest parts while those with the most opportunities are the first ones to get resources and help and are prioritized? This is what is though by many to have happened in New Orleans during the storm of Hurricane Katrina. There are many that believe that the levy was purposely brought down so that the more expensive side of New Orleans could avoid being hit hard. So basically, they think that they chose the wealthier people over the poor because it was in their interest to protect their properties and since, I’m taking this from my opinions, no one really listens to the less fortunate because they lack a strong voice, the government could get away with it. I don’t think that it was actually done in this case of Katrina, but I do understand where these people are coming from because they have gone through many similar situations where they are chosen to be the ones to suffer in the place of others. For example, the 1965 Betsy Hurricane, the levy was blown up then to avoid wealthier parts from getting damaged. So because these people have in the past been picked on, it’s understandable that they assume they were picked at again.

I don’t really have an answer to why it is that these sorts of things occur because every case is different in its own way and in my opinion can’t really be generalized. But I guess finding out why it happens is completely different from trying to understand why such things occur. SO, basically, I think that there are some prime factors to why this group/groups of people are picked on and why those in power decide to give them the worst option if any at all. I think the most important one is the fact that they don’t have a strong voice to represent them and speak their needs loud enough so that it can be heard so just about any injustice can happen to them, and most wouldn’t even turn to try and understand what went wrong. Two, society is based on prioritizing the ones that give the most. By this its’ referred to those who have the money to spend as much as they want and haven’t experienced true need. They are the ones that are most liked by the government because they give the most while the ones that don’t have enough for themselves require the government to use some of that precious money given to them, for programs (which usually don’t work) targeted to help. Three, through generations, we have all become accustomed to assuming that the worst happens to those below us, which in my opinion, are only below us because we grow-up with that mentality, therefore creating a class that’s almost impossible to get out of.