A little over six years after the devastation by hurricane Katrina, the people of New Orleans continue to piece their city back together. In addition to rebuilding efforts, attention has also focused on preserving the unique cultural heritage of New Orleans. One example of this reenergized community spirit can be found among the Mardi Gras Indians.
“Some would say that Katrina was an awakening for the Mardi Gras Indians, especially in the youth of the culture,” said Kendra Hanlon, an anthropology student at the University of New Hampshire who spent her summer among the New Orleans-based tribes. According to her, the community has come to see just how special their traditions are in the face of losing everything.
“Like everyone else in [New Orleans], they have come to realize what they could lose: their culture, their tribes…the things that make their community special,” she wrote in an email.
A class trip to New Orleans inspired Hanlon’s interest in this unique community. In March 2010 on St. Joseph’s Night—a high holiday for these Black Indians—Hanlon got to see the annual ritual up close for the first time.
“It was without a doubt the most impressive sight I’ve ever witnessed,” she says. “I’d never heard or seen anything like that in the U.S. before or still.”
The Mardi Gras are perhaps best known for their colorful and detailed costumes. Full body suits feature feathers, rhinestones, and brightly colored beadwork patches depicting deeply personal moments in an individual’s life. These suits are heavy, eye-catching, and labor-intensive creations that can cost up to $10,000 a piece. Indians who participate in the parades are expected to make a new suit every year, but the garments are only worn on three occasions: Mardi Gras Day, the evening of St. Joseph’s Day, and Super Sunday—the Sunday closest to St. Joseph’s Day.
The Mardi Gras Indian performances are a dazzling display of rhythm, feathers, and color, but there is much more to this culture than their annual parades.
“They are a culture that is all about being Indian, not acting,” noted Hanlon. “These people are who they are year round—they just parade that image in a fantastical suit only a couple times a year.”
Although Mardi Gras events are largely festive affairs today, the Indian holidays were once marked by brutality. For several decades starting in the late 1800s, these holidays saw intertribal tension and violence. But much has changed explains Hanlon, who said that by the 1970s they “became a less dangerous culture and more about the suits and performance.”
The colorful suits reveal a remarkable skill for sewing and beadwork in the Mardi Gras Indian community. According to Hanlon, the suits not only connect the wearer to this cultural heritage, but also give the Indians a chance to demonstrate their impressive sewing skills, which are judged closely by their peers.
“Part of what determines a great chief is if he can sew with great ability,” said Hanlon.
The Mardi Gras originated about 200 years ago and, in a sense, exists as an enduring tribute. According to one legend, the culture descended from slaves who were aided by Native Americans in their escape to freedom. To honor the people who helped them in their struggle, the Mardi Gras continue to emulate their religious chants, costumes, and performance.
The Mardi Gras trace their origins to some of the first free African-Americans in this country, and Hanlon said that in addition to their adopted Native American ways, the Mardi Gras still keep strong ties to their African-American roots as well. While they are collectively known as the Mardi Gras, each tribe is unique in its customs and traditions.
While many cultures have contributed to the distinctive flavor of life found in New Orleans, according to Hanlon, the Mardi Gras played an integral role in shaping the sound of the music the city is known for: jazz.
“The local communities, especially African-American communities, are very much affected by the Mardi Gras; they are seen as community leaders and are revered,” said Hanlon. “They are a huge presence, but they have no interest in making sure outsiders are knowledgeable of them.”
Hanlon said that because of this, researching this culture can be a challenge. She explains that many investigators have attempted to thrust themselves into the culture with little success. The difference with Hanlon, however, was that she merely wanted to learn more.
“If you want to learn they are there, but they are not a tourist commodity,” she noted. “They are not here for commercial value. They are doing what they do because it is who they are, and they do it for no one else but themselves.”
After Katrina, there has been a renewed interest among the Mardi Gras in carrying their traditions into the future. Hanlon said there are even some chiefs that go into schools and talk with kids to teach them the old ways, and time honored moral codes, which she says is “something that is often ignored in schools and youth of communities in the country, especially New Orleans. They see how special it is and how necessary and important it is to continue it.”
