Alderman Anthony Beale of the city's ninth ward was among black leaders who attended the breakfast on Friday.

Mr Edwards launched his campaign in the lower ninth ward, a district of New Orleans badly hit by Hurricane Katrina last year.

The hulking gray naval vessel Cape Knox is docked alongside the upper ninth ward, presiding over ornate wooden homes with wrought iron flourishes.

It's just not an easy place to live, says Laura Paul, as we drive around the lower ninth ward of New Orleans, dodging potholes.

From the first public school to reopen in the hard-hit lower ninth ward, he spoke of a city that was on the way to recovery.

It now comprises the ninth ward of the city of Boston, and contains within its limits a real estate valuation of sixteen millions of dollars.

In the lower ninth ward, a sprawl of largely ramshackle one- and two-storey homes, which were hit hard by Katrina, appeared abandoned at first glance.

I expect the Ninth Ward Marching Band will be here by suppertime.

With the Ninth Ward eliminated we could control the district barely.

With the Ninth Ward for us it would be a walk-over.

But low-income housing areas like the Ninth Ward are still hard-hit.

Campaigning in North Carolina, Clinton said McCain had suggested tearing down the Ninth Ward.

Outside the Ninth Ward we had passed beyond our hopes.

But according to some residents, he hasn't been seen in the Lower Ninth Ward in years.

There was nothing from the Ninth Ward yet.

Most of the city's Lower Ninth ward, scarred by memories of Katrina, was deserted on Tuesday.