Date of Award

Fall 12-2020

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Degree Program

History

Department

History

Major Professor

Dr. Mary Mitchell

Second Advisor

Dr. Connie Atkinson

Third Advisor

Dr. Al Kennedy

Fourth Advisor

NA

Fifth Advisor

NA

Sixth Advisor

NA

Seventh Advisor

NA

Abstract

The Southeast Louisiana landscape sits at the intersection of a number of environmental and humanitarian crises. Violence against man and land endemic to the Plantation Era development of the Lower Mississippi laid the foundation for modern issues of coastal land loss, habitat destruction, pollution, environmental racism, and displacement. Land-use patterns of the Plantation economy made the region optimal for petrochemical processing, turning wetland to wasteland, and plantation to plant. The exhibit Climates of Inequality: Standing Up On River Road uses photography, cinematography, 360-video, and soundscapes to explore the dialogic relationship between fragile natural spaces in southern Louisiana and the historically disenfranchised communities affected by the growth of the petrochemical industry. Tracing the development of the visuals for the exhibit from the lead photographer’s perspective, this paper argues that place-based storytelling and public history research are as vital to the legislative and concrete advancement of environmental justice agendas as scientific research.

Rights

The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.

Available for download on Thursday, December 18, 2025

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