New Orleans Mardi Gras Indians

Mardi Gras Indians, New Orleans

Most people don't know much about the Mardi Gras Indians.  I know more than our visitors do, but even I don't know much about the Indians.  As I always like to say, "The Indians do what they do."  I know more than that, but I don't always feel comfortable sharing it.  You can't define a bird.

What do New Orleans Mardi Gras Indians do?  They hand sew their suits every year.  They never appear in public in the exact same suit twice.  The big chiefs compete on grounds of who is the most beautiful.  How do they determine that?  I'm not entirely sure.  They all leave me dumbstruck.  

"Do you know where we'll be able to see some Mardi Gras Indians this weekend?"  Nope.  Not in their suits, at least.  Mardi Gras Indians are everywhere.  If you want to see an Indian without his or her suit, go outside.  I see them at the hardware store, at the supermarket, and at the bars I frequent, but they aren't in their full feathered regalia.

One of the misconceptions people have about New Orleans is that we all dress up in costume and dance down the street with a shrimp po' boy in one hand and a trumpet in the other.  Most people do that once or twice a year, but we don't do it every day.  It has to be the season and there has to be a reason.  Your humble narrator, for example, can barely play the kazoo, let alone a trumpet, not even a toy one.

What are the Indians' reasons?  That is for them to know and you to find out.  You probably aren't going to find out and there's really no reason for you to know.  The Indians do what they do because that's what Mardi Gras Indians do.  

If you are lucky enough to be in New Orleans on Mardi Gras Day, on St. Joseph's Night, or on one of the Super Sundays, you may see a Mardi Gras Indian in his or her suit. Maybe not.  There's no guarantee.  The Indians are not tourist attractions.  They do not sew their suits all year long to have their pictures taken by you or I.  They are respected members of their community.  It cheapens their dignity, their history and, at the core of the matter, what they are, to think of them as eye candy or part of the city's colorful scenery.  They are much more important than that.

If you want to watch a documentary about the Indians, we recommend "Bury the Hatchet."  I'm sure it's available on Netflix.  Here's the trailer:


In our neighborhood, we are graced to have the Washitaw Nation.  They had an open practice one night last year at Club Caribbean up the street from our house and we went.  Whenever I remember that night, I get goosebumps and chills.  

The Big Chief of the Washitaw Nation is Big Chief David Montana.  This is what he looked like on Bayou Super Sunday this year:

Big Chief of the Washitaw Nation, New Orleans, 2015

I write this post somewhat reluctantly.  I am no expert and I certainly mean no disrespect to the Indians I know, or to the Indians I don't know.  It is always a privilege to see them, both suited or not.  New Orleans is a very special place, full of special traditions, special things, and special people.  It isn't always the prettiest place or the most kind to the people who live here.  It is like nowhere else on earth, though, and thank God for that.  

New Orleans just does what it does because those are the things that this magical city does.  These things don't always make sense.  They don't have to.  Good memories are made here, the kind that make a deep impression that will last a lifetime.

Here's a short documentary in which Big Chief David Montana works on his 2014 suit:


As I post this video, it has only 24 views.  It deserves more if you want to learn a little bit about a big something of what it's like to live in New Orleans.  My Big Chief's got a golden crown.

À votre santé,
La Belle Esplanade bed and breakfast.