The descendants of Louisiana’s Canary Islanders, known locally as
Los Islenos, wondered seven months after Hurricane Katrina if
they’d be able to hold the annual spring celebration of their
culture again. For one thing, their museum in St. Bernard Parish
had been damaged by the storm, and members residing in that parish
had been displaced.
But the cultural organization offered a festival behind the
parish government buildings in Chalmette, near to where the Battle
of New Orleans took place nearly two centuries before. Then they
waited to see if people would come. “We get 30,000 to 40,000 people
usually,” said Dorothy Benge, president of Los Islenos. “That year
[2006], we got a lot more.”
This year, the people returned, with local Islenos showing
visiting volunteers and AmeriCorps workers how to shuck
oysters.
“Our heritage is alive and well, and we intend to preserve it,”
Benge said.
Traditional celebrations have been ongoing at New Orleans’ Treme
neighborhood, despite setbacks from the storm. The Backstreet
Cultural Museum has reopened, displaying dozens of Mardi Gras
Indian costumes for the modest fee of $5. Visitors get a
personalized tour from Museum Director Sylvestor Francis, who
explains the history and culture of the African-Americans who
started parading as Indians on Mardi Gras day to honor their early
connections with American Indians. It takes a year to create one of
the magnificent costumes, Francis explained, and once worn, they
cannot be worn again at Carnival.
At the Louisiana State Museum Cabildo in Jackson Square,
visitors can see how a variety of cultures mixing in the Crescent
City and throughout the state have helped form the unique culture
that prevails. Immigrants arrived in New Orleans from not only the
mother country of France, but Germany, Ireland, Spain and Italy.
Natives of the the state were Choctaw, Houma, Chitimacha and other
tribes. Many of the slaves brought into Louisiana came by way of
Haiti after the Haitian revolution, bringing with them the practice
of voodoo. Today, voodoo practitioners perform authentic rituals a
far cry from the Hollywood portrayal and daily tours explain the
religion’s history.
“During the Spanish period was this influx of immigrants that
makes Louisiana so interesting today,” said Charles D. Chamberlain
III, Louisiana State Museum historian.
In the suburb of Kenner, 30 minutes from downtown New Orleans,
is the Cannes Brulee Native American Village of Rivertown, a
collection of museums nestled in the bend of the Mississippi. Guest
artists appear at Cannes Brulee from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays,
demonstrating everything from the split river cane basketry of the
state’s Chitamacha tribe to the four-strand braid palmetto basketry
of the Houmas.
This summer, the Essence Music Festival, featuring Beyonce,
Lionel Richie and Mary J. Blige, among other big-name
African-American entertainers, will be held July 5-7 in the
Louisiana Superdome.
The 14th annual Creole Heritage Celebration & Expo will be
held in October in Natchitoches to honor the descendants of the
native-born of colonial Louisiana. Sponsored by the Creole Heritage
Center of Louisiana’s Northwestern State University, the national
event consists of workshops, family reunions, award ceremonies and
tours of the area’s historical landmarks, most of which were
established by Creoles of color, including plantations.
“Creole is hot,” said Janet Colson, assistant director of the
center. “And we have become the national voice for everything
Creole.”
