The Impact of Natural Disasters on Systemic Political and Social Inequities in the U.S.

The Impact of Natural Disasters on Systemic Political and Social Inequities in the U.S. examines how natural disasters impact social inequality in the United States. The contributors study social and political mechanisms in disaster response and relief that enable natural disasters to worsen inequalities in America.

The Impact of Natural Disasters on Systemic Political and Social Inequities in the U.S. examines how natural disasters impact social inequality in the United States. The contributors cover topics such as criminal justice, demographics, economics, history, political science, and sociology to show how effects of natural disasters vary by social and economic class in the United States. This volume studies social and political mechanisms in disaster response and relief that enable natural disasters to worsen inequalities in America and offers potential solutions.

Chapter 1: The Impact of Natural Disasters on Inequities: Exploring New Paradigms and Relevant Evidence

Geoffrey L. Wood

Chapter 2: The Missing Link in Disaster Social Science

Peter Loebach and Julie Stewart

Chapter 3: Working for the Clampdown: The Impact of Hyper-Decentralization on Voter Registration & Ballot Access in the Wake of Natural Disasters

Paul Simon Adams

Chapter 4: Judging Worthiness: Hurricane Maria, Puerto Ricans and the Articulation of American National Identity

Amilcar Antonio Barreto

Chapter 5: “I Think They Capitalized… on a Lot of People’s Loss”: Perceptions of Reconstruction after the Tuscaloosa Tornado

Ariane Prohaska

Chapter 6: No Port in the Storm: Hurricanes and the Impact of Criminal Records

Pamela Ray Koch and Dennis Feaster

Chapter 7: Other Impacts of Natural Disasters: Media Framing, Crime, and Categorical Inequality

Timothy Holler and Renee Lamphere

Chapter 8: The Way Forward—How Do We Improve Outcomes and Create Solutions for People Impacted by Natural Disasters?

Paul Simon Adams and Geoffrey L. Wood