Why Is Mardi Gras Important

Social Aid and Pleasure clubs played a key role in the community organizing a counterpart to Mardi Gras. Groups with their own long and distinct histories such as the Black Indians, now called Mardi Gras Indians, skull and bone gangs, baby dolls, and brass bands would all parade for the African American version of Mardi Gras. This practice spanned the turn of the century through the birth of the civil rights era in the 1950’s. Even though Mardi Gras is no longer segregated, these practices remain an integral part of Mardi Gras in African American communities in New Orleans because they have been cemented as crucial aspects of community pride and cultural identity ( ). These Mardi Gras practices, the second line parades that occur year round, social aid and pleasure clubs, and of course jazz music are still an extremely significant part of many black communities in New Orleans today but there are numerous societal pressures being exercised on these communities that are putting their cultural practices in

Halloween has already spread worldwide, and been given many cultural interpretations of what it represents, and how it should be celebrated. However, Día de los Muertos has just recently started spreading farther outside of hispanic culture. Día de los Muertos is a holiday celebrating death and the afterlife that death brings, as well as embracing the deceased as if they are, in a way, gods. Whereas, Halloween’s

T'S MARDI GRAS!!!!! Yes, New Orleans' famous Carnival season is this years' never-ending party and you're invited. Mardi Gras, famous for its colorful and cultural parades, is an experience you can't go any longer w/out! The Streets are packed with both tourists and Native Louisianans as they celebrate Mardi Gras in full color and sound. . The Huge Parades come flashing down the street we fresh music, an explosion of lights, and spectacular floats. Everyone is having a great time, enjoying the festivities of the parade. So you're new to Mardi Gras, but don't want to act like it? Here in brief, are the basic facts about Americas' greatest party.

Mardi Gras is a wonderful holiday that attracted everyone from the country to come to the city, even though the holiday was not from New Orleans. Mardi Gras

Christians commonly celebrate the New Year January 1st, according to the Julian calendar; For orthodox Christians whom follow the Gregorian calendar New Year is marked on January 14th or sometime around that date. (Christian Observances and Rituals) Orthodox or not the New Year is a day celebrated most Christians, many attending mass. Another commonly celebrated day is, “Epiphany Sunday, commonly known as Three Kings’ Day in the United States, is on January 6. It celebrates the three wise men’s visit to baby Jesus and also remembers his baptism, according to the Christian Bible’s events. The United States (US) Virgin Islands observe the day as a public holiday.” (Epiphany in the United States) On this day children, bake cookies and cakes in honor of the Three Wise Men. This day is exactly twelve days after Christmas, another Christian

On Dia de los Muertos, the people who celebrate this holiday celebrate death. The Mexicans and Central Americans who celebrate Dia de los Muertos think that death is just another part of life, and that the people who die go to the afterlife. During Dia de los Muertos, the families of the loved ones who’ve died will create an altar for the dead person’s spirit. The families will make the altar, and cover it with food, decorations, and things that the person had once liked. Objects like a drink or food they liked, or a colored cloth representing the color, or even toys or games that the person liked before the death. The altar is covered in Las Flores. This flower is something that everyone has on their altars. Las Velas light and guide the souls to the altar.The people also celebrating Dia de los Muertos dress up like what the person looked like, or what job they had. On Halloween, people dress up as whatever they want to be to get candy, and go Trick-or-Treating. On Halloween in Europe in medieval times, the people would go out in costumes because they were scared that there were spirits roaming around. They didn’t do this “holiday” because it was fun, instead they did it out of fear. Halloween started with the Celtic pagan ritual known as Samhain. During “Halloween” in medieval times, the people believed that barrier between our world, and the spirit world was at its thinnest, and people could communicate with the dead.

If every american had a tatoo it would be “July 4th, 1776”; that’s how crucial the 4th of July is to America. If it weren’t for the Declaration of Independence, who knows… Maybe wed’e still be getting taxed by England. A few people who played a major part for making the 4th of July a date known throughout the American nation were John Hancock, Thomas Paine, George Washington, and of course all of this wouldn’t be possible without King George the third.

Today, the city hosts a family oriented version of the New Orleans Mardi Gras season. The event takes place yearly, from February 3rd to March 9th. King Caked are a staple at the Metairie event. The cakes name originates from the tale of the three wise men that brought gifts to baby Jesus. The event is free and consists of parades, music and mask wielding revelers. The parades take place multiple times during the celebration and sometime there are as many as 10 parades in one

Although the dance originated in Zitlala, dancers perform it today in many regions for many different celebrations and festivities. One of these include “Dia de San Juan Bautista” or Day of Saint Juan. In fact, they perform this and similar dances during celebrations of all the Saints. A parade usually marks the beginning of the festivity. Cars and floats move along the streets. These floats normally all demonstrate some aspect of Mexican culture, such as music. Then, the dancing begins. There is also a firework show. These festivities usually last through the night. The dance is

D-Day was one of the most important battles of World War II. The reason why D-Day was important is because it marked the first time in the war that Allied troops threatened Germany's control of Europe ("Why Is D-Day Important?" Reference). According to US Army, “the Allies gained a foot-hold in continental Europe.” We might not have won the war without winning this foot-hold. D-Day is the secret date on which a military operation is to begin. According to The World Book Encyclopedia volume 5, peacetime was the planning of a military operation that was based of hypothetical D-Day (page 2). According to The World Book Encyclopedia volume 5 the term D-plus-3 stands for three days after the day an attack was appose to happen

Lafayette Louisiana witch is the capital of the Cajun Country. Has the second biggest Mardi Gras celebration. This celebration has lost its meaning. More of a tourist profit to the state this celebration would be a very hard challenge to get the state to bring its meaning back. In the old days, Mardi Gras was not just the day before Ash Wednesday. It was a day that people rode on horseback or in their trucks going to town’s businesses and neighborhoods. Once the owner of the homes or businesses allowed these people to come in the masked people started to sing, dance, play around or even play pranks on the people who allowed them in. Before the masked people left the begged the owners of the business or home for rice or other things. If they gave them something such as money or things to make a gumbo, they allowed that person to a gumbo feast that was held that evening. And if they did not the masked people would destroy their home or business. They might even mock them for years to come.” This group of masked people was known as classed Les Mardi Gras, or in English the Mardi Gras.” (Ware, 2003) Today Cajun’s don't celebrate it this way anymore. Mardi Gras is considered to be paradise, festivals, drinking and getting as many beads as you can. The masked people can still be seen but not asking for things to make a gumbo or money but as a symbol in the

In 1703, Jean Baptists Le Moyne Sieur de Bienville lead an expedition throughout the lower region of North America territory, when he settled in what is modern-day Mobile, Alabama to celebrate the first known celebrated Mardi Gras event. Mardi Gras was not commemorated in New Orleans until the 1930s which was about twelve yeas after the city was founded. For a fifty year period in time, New Orleans did not celebrate Mardi Gras as a carnival, but rather through social balls influenced by Louisiana’s governor in the early 1940s, Marquis de Vaudreuil. The first reference of Mardi Gras in carnival style came in 1781, when information surfaced of carnival organization forming in New Orleans. By 1830s, the carnival style became in grained into the holiday’s traditions. In 1873, floats for New Orleans Mardi Gras were completely made in the native instead of across seas in France. In 1875, Governor Warmoth recognized Mardi Gras as an official holiday in Louisiana and from still is to this today. New Orleans’s Mardi Gras has an I testing history, however tourists to the city usually are unaware of the the complete origins story of the carnival and miss the understanding of why the holiday is important to natives. Most tourists tend to be least aware about the significance of religion to Mardi Gras’s culture in New

Blues for New Orleans: Mardi Gras and America’s Creole Soul by Roger D. Abrahams is a book about the upbringing of the New Orleans Mardi Gras carnival. This is one the most famous carnivals held in New Orleans. The festival Mardi Gras “Fat Tuesday” incorporates “such events as costumed float parades, neighborhood marches or second-lines, street gatherings, informal parties, and formal balls in New Orleans, Biloxi, and Mobile, among other Gulf Coast cities and towns.” (1) The author, Roger D. Abrahams throughout his book, speaks of the carnival from all differ perspectives and compares it to other countries held around the world. He also addresses, how before Hurricane Katrina and afterwards, the Mardi Gras festival and the culture/ tradition

Film director David Redmon, created the documentary Mardi Gras: Made in China, following the trail of beads from a factory in China to Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras, emotionally exposing the imbalances of globalization. Redmond skillfully illuminates the clash of cultures by comparing American excess and consumer ignorance against the harsh life of the Chinese factory worker. The film began with the Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans where people gathered to party, drink alcohol, and expose themselves in exchange for brightly colored plastic bead necklaces. The stories follows four teenage women workers, providing insights

Trinidad and Tobago's carnival is an annual celebration that is held on the Monday and Tuesday before the Lent season of fasting , which is celebrated by the Roman Catholic religion. The carnival festival of Trinidad and Tobago begun in the late 18th century,when the French plantation owners , held organised masquerades balls, before the fasting of Lent. The Africian slaves and coloureds were not allowed to participate in these celebrations. In turn they formed their own celebration in which they called "Canboulary". During the celebrations of the Masquerades Balls, the Africian slaves and coloured had some opportunity to be engaged and enjoy themselves.