The Economist 2012.12.22 by The Economist

Author:The Economist [The Economist]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Economist
Published: 2012-12-19T16:00:00+00:00

Unlike conventional Mardi Gras parades, which process through the centre of the city and are officially sanctioned, Mardi Gras Indian parades still tend to take place in predominantly black neighbourhoods. The marchers have long resisted efforts to have their routes sanctioned. Lolis Eric Elie, an expert on the culture of New Orleans, says that even as Mardi Gras Indians have grown more accepted by mainstream culture, “black people are the owners, practitioners and judges” of the spectacle. By and large, Mr Elie says, the spectators remain the “type of people who have been there for the last hundred years. If the white folks want to see the Indians, they have to see the Indians on their own turf.”

Mardi Gras Indians march in groups (also called tribes or gangs). The groups’ names tend to blend Native American and African influences with New Orleans geography: Creole Wild West, White Eagles, Wild Squatoolas, Wild Tchoupitoulas (Tchoupitoulas is both a street in New Orleans near the Mississippi River and the name of a long-gone Native American tribe from Louisiana), Eighth Ward Hunters, Mandingo Warriors, Congo Nation, Guardians of the Flame, Yellow Pocahontas, Wild Treme and many others. The number of groups and of the people in each fluctuates. Mr Harrison, for instance, masked first with the White Eagles, then with the Creole Wild West before ultimately “resurrecting” the White Eagles, who had been off the streets for years. The groups range in size from half a dozen to several dozen members.

Within each there are set roles. The Spy Boy marches first, often several blocks ahead of the rest, keeping an eye out for other gangs. When he sees one he alerts his colleagues with shouts and hand signals. Today, when different groups meet—and part of the purpose of parading is to meet other marchers—they dance at each other in a ritualised series of challenges, calls and responses. Fifty years ago the meetings often provoked violence; hence the need for an advance scout to relay warnings.

After the Spy Boy comes the Flag Boy. He carries the group’s colours and relays the Spy Boy’s information to the Big Chief, who marches at the back, and takes back the Chief’s commands to the Spy. Unlike them, the Wild Man can range where he likes. His role is to clear away crowds as the Chief approaches; he must be loud and demonstrative as he dances. Depending on the size of the group, some roles can be shared (ie, Second Chief, Third Chief, Trail Chief, and so on). The marchers generally attract a following of neighbourhood people in ordinary dress, playing tambourines and chanting.

The people who “mask Indian” tend to be working-class black New Orleanians. And as the names of the roles suggest, Mardi Gras Indian culture was traditionally an exclusively male preserve—“a warrior culture”, as Ms Harrison-Nelson calls it—though that is slowly changing. Ms Harrison-Nelson masks as the Big Queen of the Guardians of the Flame. While many groups start their parades from bars or taverns, last year

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