Cultural Trauma, Memory, and Gendered Collective Action: The Case of Women of the Storm Following Hurricane Katrina

Abstract Abstract: This essay examines cultural trauma, memory, gender, and performance in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, in-depth interviews, and documentary sources, this feminist analysis of cultural trauma and memory examines how an emergent, women-centered group, Women of the Storm, engaged in performative political practices aimed at increasing government support for Gulf Coast recovery efforts. The author argues that the group modified place-based practices related to ritual acts of mourning and remembrance, appropriated and transformed disaster-related symbol systems, and aimed to establish new forms of moral responsibility as part of its collective actions.