Curt Rohner, our fearless man-on-the-street for Historic Green last March, is featured briefly in a new documentary about rebuilding and recovery in NOLA that’s set to debut later this month. In “The New Orleans Tea Party”, filmmakers Marline Otte and Laszlo Fulop interviewed a priest, a cook, homeowners, neighborhood activists, student volunteers and many others over the course of a year and half. Also featured are Jimmy Carter on a Habitat for Humanity build, Wynton Marsalis, Pam Dashiell of Holy Cross, Tom Darden of the Make It Right Foundation – and our own Curt Rohner: “We may win the war on terrorism, but if we destroy the planet while we’re doing that...it’s a war lost, no matter what.”
Otte is associate professor of History with Tulane University and Fulop an assistant professor in the University of New Orleans' Film Department. They describe their documentary as chronicling:
“...the achievements of both the local residents and the millions of volunteers streaming to the region from all over the nation, while exploring the limitations and fragility of a recovery process built upon the shoulders of individuals operating almost entirely without government support. Throughout, the film thus examines larger themes relevant to American society today, culminating in a final discussion of American citizens' vision of and trust in democratic processes.”
One interviewee sums it up best, the reason for the film’s title: “I think that we’re back in Boston Harbor. I think this is the Boston Tea Party.”
A screening of "The New Orleans Tea Party" will be held Tuesday, October 28, 7 p.m. at the Freeman Auditorium in the Woldenberg Art Center at Tulane University. A reception follows. For more on this project and the filmmakers, go to The New Orleans Tea Party.
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