TIS, in 1979 a Police strike caused the city to cancel the Mardi Gras. The festival originated in the 17th century, here is a story from The Daily Reveille, written out of LSU back in February of this year :

Mardi Gras has storied history
Festival originated in 17th century
By Sarah J. Gernhauser
The Daily Reveille

February 02, 2005

The celebration of Mardi Gras, for many revelers, is all about three things: booze, breasts and beads.

Some in society use these words to describe the sights, sounds and activities that take place in New Orleans throughout the carnival period of Mardi Gras. However, before the crowded streets of the French Quarter and Uptown were filled with intoxicated college students and their families, more than a century of carnival had taken place, rich with traditions that are still upheld today.

This contagious holiday has caught the attention of hungry eyes across the country as they yearn to be in the center of the party, but originally this week of “pagan celebration” was condescended by the original colonies of America.

Mardi Gras crossed the Atlantic when French explorer Iberville founded the Louisiana territory on Mardi Gras day in 1699. In honor of the French celebration, Iberville named the area 60 miles south of present day New Orleans “Point du Mardi Gras,” said Barbara Robichaux, founder of Native Tours of New Orleans.

New Orleans celebrated its heritage by emulating the societal celebrations of its European ancestors. Also, in “old world” tradition, New Orleans replicated French custom and also was under the rule of the Catholic church. Therefore the festival was strategically placed between All King’s Day and the season of Lent.

Mimicking their French ancestors, the Creoles of New Orleans celebrated a festival similar to the Italian carnival “Lupercalia,” an ancient Roman circus-like festival, by throwing a masked carnival in the streets of the city.

After years of celebrating, New Orleans came under Spanish rule and the pre-Lenten masked ball and carnival was banned by the conservative government. The masquerade was prohibited until 1823, when the Creoles convinced their governor to allow the celebration to resurface, and in 1827 street masking was legalized.

Throughout the early 1800s Mardi Gras gained a negative and violent reputation because of the behavior and actions of the street maskers and the celebration threatened to become extinct. In 1857, six New Orleanians saved Mardi Gras by forming what is presently known as the Krewe of Comus.

The Krewe of Comus brought about the innovation of setting each parade with a unifying theme and a royal ball afterward. Comus also originated the idea of having a secret and elite Carnival society. This tradition still exists today as many carnival krewes only allow white, Christian men to join their parade. A tradition that has caused an array of civil rights suits.

In 1872 Mardi Gras saw the debut of one of its most beloved parades, the Krewe of Rex. The parade was constructed for Russian Grand Duke Alexis Romanoff’s visit to New Orleans. The Krewe of Rex introduced the traditional Mardi Gras colors of purple, green and gold at this parade and “If Ever I Cease to Love” as the Mardi Gras Anthem.

“The song ‘If Ever I Cease to Love’ was the grand duke’s favorite song,” Robichaux said. “They played this song at the Rex parade to impress him and in typical New Orleans style it caught on as a tradition.”

The secret society of carnival krewes continued throughout the 19th and into the 20th century along with the tradition of the maskers. However, the Civil Rights Act would impede on this tradition in the late 20th century.

In 1909 the Krewe of Zulu, an African-American carnival society, appeared as a parody of Rex. Zulu began the tradition of parading before Rex, causing delay in the krewe’s route and eventually, decades of protest.

A police strike caused the cancellation of Mardi Gras in 1979, and in protest against the police, angry tourists who lost their vacations began the over-popular idea of flashing the police.

In 1992, Dorothy Mae Taylor, a New Orleans politician, presented an ordinance at the New Orleans City Council demanding that the traditionally secret and selective krewes allow anyone who applies into the society.

Her argument, that tax payers support the upkeep of the streets, caused a huge battle between tradition and politics. This caused the original Mardi Gras Krewes of Comus and the Knights of Momus to cancel their parade routes because they refused to comply with Taylor’s ordinance.

Although an upsetting and compromising battle, the Taylor struggle brought about the toasting of the Zulu and Rex deities a symbolic means of compromise. Mardi Gras also has seen the creation of more krewes to meet the specific needs of anyone who wants to join.

The festivities have seen the country through its hardest times of war, depression, prohibition and economic boom, but through the years has stood firm in its rich tradition of “eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow is the Lord’s day!”

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Don Cardi