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Photos from events, contest for the best costume, videos from master classes.
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Dancing in Congo Square, 1886. Mardi Gras Indians have been practicing their traditions in New Orleans since at least the 18th century. The colony of New Orleans was founded by the French in 1718, on land inhabited by the Chitimacha Tribe, and within the first decade 5,000 enslaved Africans were trafficked to the colony. One of the most mysterious, fascinating, and colorful pieces of New Orleans’ cultural quilt belongs to Mardi Gras Indians, also referred to as Black Masking Indians. A unique and historic subculture of New Orleans, Black Masking Indians and their traditions date back to the 1800s when Native Americans provided safe refuge and a sense of Mardi Gras Indians in 2011 Derek Bridges via Wikimedia Commons under CC BY 2.0. of the Golden Blades in his Mardi Gras Indian suit Courtesy of the New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Council. Big Chief Demond Melancon hand beading a part of his Mardi Gras Indian suit. (C)2019 GILES CLEMENT/DEMOND MELANCON. In 2008, after Hurricane Katrina’s devastation, Melancon returned to masking. On Mardi Gras Day, if you're lucky enough to see some of the Mardi Gras Indians, the first Indian you're likely to see is the Spy Boy. His job places him ahead of the Big Chief's procession. Each Spy Boy has a method to signal potential trouble or approaching rival Indian tribes with dancing, whooping, hollering, and hand language. The New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Council always has their Indian Sunday on the third Sunday of March, around St. Joseph's Day. Their festivities begin at noon in A.L. Davis Park (at Washington & LaSalle Streets) where the Mardi Gras Indians once again dress in their feathers and suits and take to the streets to meet other "gangs". Indians would meet on Mardi Gras; it was a day to settle scores." - Larry Bannock, Past President, New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Council. Masking Indian Indians Ranks Super Sunday Keep-N-It-Real Indian Videos. Mardi Gras is full of secrets, and the Mardi Gras Indians are as much a part of that secrecy as any other carnival organization. There are 30 to 40 Mardi Gras Indian tribes of various sizes in New Orleans. Each tribe has a "big chief" and one or two (second and third) other chiefs. Mardi Gras Indians traditionally *The Mardi Gras Indians are celebrated on this date (Fat Tuesday) in 1732. These African Americans participate as a cultural foundation of New Orleans and Mardi gras history. The Mardi Gras Indians are as much a part of that secret society as any other carnival organization. The heritage of the Mardi Gras Indians is an African based long and hard road, starting in late 1600's with the Indian The ceremonial singing of “Indian Red” starts the day by calling out the tribe by position—Spy Boy, Flag Boy, Wildman, Queen, Chief—in a slow chorus with a thunder-drum backbeat, punctuated by sharp tambourine slaps as each Indian shows off specific traditional dance moves, battle shouts, and the layers of their handiwork on this year’s suit. Inside 'Indian Red,' The Anthem Of New Orleans' Mardi Gras Indians African-Americans in the city have paraded in spectacular regalia inspired by Native American motifs for more than a century. The Indians would meet on Mardi Gras; it was a day to settle scores." - Larry Bannock, Past President, New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Council. Masking Indian Indians Ranks Super Sunday Keep-N-It-Real Indian Videos. Mardi Gras is full of secrets, and the Mardi Gras Indians are as much a part of that secrecy as any other carnival organization. Enjoy rarely seen videos of the New Orleans Mardi Gras Indians on Super Sunday (St. Joseph's Day). Enjoy some of our favorite video clips from Mardi Gras. You can also watch video footage from years past, including celebrity interviews and the Zulu parade, from the Mardi Gras Inside and Out Video Series. Since 1970, when they appeared at the inaugural New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Mardi Gras Indians, also known as Black Masking Indians, have emerged from the relative obscurity of neighborhood backstreets to become celebrated icons, with their music and folkways emblazoned on the cultural consciousness of New Orleans and beyond The History behind the masking of the Mardi Gras Indians is an extremely rich one. "If I had a heart attack at 92, I'd still mask. In New Orleans, you don't need a reason to do what you do, you do it because that's the way it is!" - Larry Bannock, President, New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Council Chief Zulu operates Golden Feather, a Mardi Gras Indian gallery and restaurant, and hosts seminars on the history of Mardi Gras Indians in New Orleans. According to Chief Zulu, the Mardi Gras Become a Member Located in Treme, the oldest African-American neighborhood in the United States, is the Backstreet Cultural Museum where visitors find an amazing assortment of memorabilia indigenous to Mardi Gras, jazz funerals and other traditions found only in New Orleans. The Backstreet Museum, once the home of the Blandin Funeral Home, houses the city’s largest collection of Mardi Gras M ardi Gras Indians are African Americans who form “tribes” that hold weekly practices in bars throughout New Orleans and then march through the streets on Mardi Gras Day and other recurring dates, when they wear elaborately hand-beaded and feathered costumes known as “suits.” In these public ceremonies, the Indians sing chants as they In the summer of 2019, Mardi Gras Indians appeared in second lines for New Orleans legends Leah Chase, Dr. John, Dave Bartholomew and Art Neville. Learn more about this Mardi Gras Indian Summer here. But, don’t worry — you can still see Mardi Gras Indian tradition no matter the time of year you visit. The Donald Harrison, Sr. Museum, located in the heart of the historic 9th Ward, showcases exhibits on the African diaspora, including the Mardi Gras Indians. Learn more about New Orleans' neighborhoods.
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Photos from events, contest for the best costume, videos from master classes.
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