Carnival In New Orleans Essay

Before I was able to experience Carnival in New Orleans, I always thought that there was no real meaning behind it. It was just the time of year where New Orleanians were able to drink, parade and party all day long. My belief was that Mardi Gras was just one big party with no actual significance. This belief is the stereotype for many outsiders not familiar with the rich and paramount history of Mardi Gras. The traditions of Mardi Gras stem from hundreds of years old celebrations, rituals and rights. For a New Orleanian, Mardi Gras is not just a celebration but also an event of cultural significance. The traditions that make New Orleans Carnival significant and distinct stem from other cultures and traditions. This fusion of different cultures

“The Louisiana Purchase, a deal that included the huge 828,000 square mile-territory that includes New Orleans and the Mississippi River Valley, for $15 million”(Histoy.com Editors The French in New Orleans). Louisiana became a United States territory and therefore adopted the United States customs and laws. Later on when slavery was abolished, Jim Crow laws and segregation took place. This meant that white spaces were exclusively white and black citizens weren’t permitted, by law, to access these spaces. This segregated culture continued even during carnival season. Krewes wouldn’t parade in predominantly black neighborhoods, though the city was “almost 60 percent”(Zickgraf) black. They also didn’t allow black New Orleanians to join the exclusive communities of the Krewes. Due to this division, the African American community of New Orleans had to forge their own way of carnival. They intertwined different cultures and traditions that formed their distinct African American culture and created a distinctive way of carnival that is now widely broadcasted throughout all of Mardi

As many know New Orleans is the home of Jazz and Blues music which are prominent music themes during Mardi Gras. How did Jazz and Blues originate in New Orleans and become deeply infused in the culture? In order to answer this question, one must look back to when Louisiana was a French territory. Under French rule,“article five of the code noir…exempted slaves from forced labor on Sundays and religious holidays.”(Johnson). On these exempted days, enslaved people were allowed to allocate their time as desired. Many of them decided to go to Congo Square, a major market and gathering place in New Orleans. In Congo Square, enslaved people were allowed to trade, sell and buy items. Not only did the market provide tangible goods but it also provided a mix of culture and new inventions. Congo Square “bears upon the development of jazz and the history of black New Orleans”(Johnson). Another popular tradition of Mardi Gras that was cultivated in African American culture was the second-line. This also originated in Congo Square. “Second-line was also a set of loosely coordinated steps the dancers do as part of a strut behind the band, twirling and pumping umbrellas in the air and waving handkerchiefs. It is a dance that perhaps recalled the African gatherings in Congo Square that had been forbidden many years ago because their collective force and potential had frightened whites.”(Abrahams, 32). The