Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem has suggested that 1 in 6 female Lahaina wildfire survivors in 2023 traded sexual favors for necessities, citing a study from Tagnawa, a Filipino feminist disaster response organization.
Noem didn’t say FEMA was responsible for the exploitation, but implied FEMA’s poor response contributed to the situation. Noem’s remarks at a July 9 FEMA review meeting align with President Trump’s threats to dismantle the disaster response agency, even as vital federal emergency resources are actively deployed to Central Texas after catastrophic flooding.
