Ida Belle Joshua is a native of New Orleans, La., and survivor of Hurricane Betsy. She moved to the Ninth Ward in 1949 with her husband, Isaac Joshua Sr. They have three children. Before Hurricane Betsy, she worked as a hair dresser. After the storm, she attended the University of New Orleans, Atlanta University (now Clark Atlanta University), and Tulane University and worked as a teacher's aide, social worker, and adjunct professor at Xavier University. She is a former president of the Lower Ninth Ward Neighborhood Council and Area Beautification Committee and has been an advocate for improvement of the Ninth Ward community. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, she temporarily relocated to Lafayette, La. She intended to return to her home and had begun having it repaired before it was demolished. She and several other residents sued the city of New Orleans and achieved their goal of preventing the city from demolishing homes without proper notification and hearings for homeowners.
From the description of Ida Belle Joshua oral history interview, 2003. (Louisiana State University). WorldCat record id: 635196062
