African - Americans could buy houses in Pontchartrain Park in the 1950s . Residents established a strong middle - class identity , despite the limits of segregation . `` But my knees kind of buckled when I looked in here Hurricane Katrina uprooted the community , destroying every structure . Today , more than half of the Park 's residents have returned .
African - Americans could buy houses in Pontchartrain Park in the 1950s . Residents established a strong middle - class identity , despite the limits of segregation . Hurricane Katrina uprooted the community , destroying every structure . Today , more than half of the Park 's residents have returned .