As The Clock Runs Out On $300 Unemployment Benefits, A New Orleans Waitress Is Left In Limbo
Dora Whitfield poses for a portrait outside of her home in New Orleans, Friday, July 2, 2021. Whitfield volunteers her time educating workers on the benefits of unions and advocates for unemployment reform.
When Dora Whitfield bought her house in 2014, she and her husband were so giddy they invited a caravan of family members over to see the place.
It was a hard-earned present she was able to afford because of her job as a buffet waitress at Harrah’s Casino. When Whitfield purchased the three-bedroom home in New Orleans, she broke free from 30 years of living in public housing.
These days, she is praying she does not lose it altogether.
When the pandemic struck, she was laid off and has been getting by on unemployment benefits ever since. Now, the additional federal unemployment benefits that helped her will soon disappear. Louisiana is ending the $300 weekly payments on July 31, following the lead of states like Alabama and Mississippi who cut off the checks in June in hopes of driving up job applications for businesses desperate for workers.
But for Whitfield, returning to work and her pre-pandemic life is not so simple. She is not sure her old job will be restored. If she looks for work elsewhere, she risks not making as much money as she would have earned from her hourly wages and tips at Harrah’s.
“Oh Lord, what should I do?” Whitfield said. “Should I get up with these bad knees and walk around Walmart? Or should I wait on the casino to call?”
Read the full story from our partners at New Orleans Public Radio here.
This story was produced by the Gulf States Newsroom, a collaboration between Mississippi Public Broadcasting, WBHM in Birmingham, Ala., WWNO in New Orleans and NPR.
White House says ‘all options’ are on the table for Greenland, including diplomacy
President Trump has long expressed an interest in acquiring Greenland. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says Trump isn't ruling out any options, but that diplomacy is his "first option."
ICE agent fatally shoots woman in Minneapolis amid immigration crackdown
The Department of Homeland Security accused the victim of being a "rioter" and that the ICE officer who pulled the trigger was "fearing for his life." Mayor Jacob Frey rejected claims of self-defense.
U.S. population growth is slowing. The immigration crackdown is a major factor
Congressional forecasters have lowered their projection for U.S. population growth over the next decade by 7 million people as a result of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown as well as falling birth rates.
Nick Reiner’s attorney removes himself from case
Defense attorney Alan Jackson said that circumstances beyond his and Reiner's control made it "impossible" to continue representation.
Béla Fleck cancels Kennedy Center appearance, says it’s become ‘charged and political’
The 18-time Grammy Award winner is the latest musician to cancel an show at the Kennedy Center. Béla Fleck says he cannot currently perform there because it "has become charged and political."
How large is Greenland, really? Your map may be deceiving you
Talk of annexation has Greenland in the news again. But due to quirks of cartography, some common maps show the territory much larger than it is.
