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Space and Culture, Vol. 9, No. 1, 77-79 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/1206331205283727
© 2006 SAGE Publications

What Makes a Disaster "Natural"?

Peter S. Alagona

University of California, Los Angeles

Natural disasters differ from unnatural disasters not so much in their causes or in their effects but primarily in our reaction to them. In natural disasters nature plays the role of a catalyst. Yet nature does not provide a convenient enemy to rally against and attack in retribution. This in part explains why, unlike the social and political unity that followed the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, violence and political turmoil ensued in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Key Words: New Orleans • Hurricane Katrina • natural disasters • ideas of nature


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