The national impact of Katrina

The lack of national leadership in post-Katrina rebuilding isn't just causing immense hardship for those in the Gulf Coast. As the Brookings Institute's latest Katrina Index shows, people dispersed by the flood -- the Katrina diaspora -- are facing severe economic troubles:

More than one-third of the people displaced by Katrina are now unemployed, an increase of 54% in the month of March alone. Life for those who have managed to return to New Orleans is much different: only 5.3% of evacuees who have returned to New Orleans are jobless.

About half of those displaced by Katrina still haven't made it back to the city -- and they won't be able to as long as political leaders continue to drag their feet on rebuilding the city. That means lots of people struggling to get by, shifting the burden to cities like Atlanta, Baton Rouge and Houston.

Everyone loses in the vacuum of leadership around Gulf Coast rebuilding.