Encyclopedia of African American History

Miscegenation  229

but reorganized in 1916 under the auspices of Zulu Social

Aid and Pleasure Club. Th e Zulu parade is the oldest and

largest African American parade connected to Mardi Gras,

and it is widely known for the coconuts that the fl oat rid-

ers, dressed in grass skirts and blackface, throw to parade

watchers. In 1949, wearing a red velvet robe and traditional

blackface, Louis Armstrong became the most famous king

to lead the Zulu Parade.

Some of the activities associated with Mardi Gras have

become outdated but are still recreated each year. For in-

stance, fl ambeaux carriers were men of color who initially

carried torches to light parade fl oats before electricity was

available to do so. Even though this tradition is still alive

at present, fewer fl ambeaux carriers are seen at each Mardi

Gras celebration. Th e few remaining carriers stand as bear-

ers of historical memory.

See also: Armstrong, Louis; Black Folk Culture; Congo

Square, New Orleans

Jayetta Slawson

Bibliography

Schindler, Henri. Mardi Gras New Orleans. Paris: Flammarion,

1997.

Smith, Michael. Mardi Gras Indians. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publish-

ing, 1994.

Miscegenation

Th e term “miscegenation” refers to the sexual union and

cohabitation between persons of diff erent racial origin

and was used in laws passed in the United States that pro-

hibited interracial marriage. It also refers to persons who

believe racial intermarriage is fundamentally wrong. Th e

term is derived from the Latin miscere, meaning “to mix,”and

genus, meaning “race,” and it replaces the term “amalgam-

ate,” which was not accurate or scientifi c. In short, it means

simply “to mix race,” a phenomenon that has been in exis-

tence since the early colonial times in American history, to

the present day. Th e word was coined, or at least became

popularized, in 1863 by the anonymous authors of a pam-

phlet at Christmas time in New York City, titled Miscegena-

tion: Th e Th eory of the Blending of Races Applied to the White

and Negro, who argued in favor of African American and

white intermarriage. Th e real authors were discovered to be

Carnival has long been identifi ed with New Orleans
street performance. A form of street dancing called “Sec-
ond Line” originated in the mid 1800s. Th e phrase was
originally coined to refer to the crowd that followed the
musicians and mourners in a street celebration for a fu-
neral. Another infl uence on the evolution of Mardi Gras
in African American communities was Buff alo Bill’s Wild
West Shows that, in the late 1800s, introduced New Orleans
audiences to the pageantry of Native American costum-
ing. Th ese shows may have aff ected a street spectacle that
formed as an outgrowth of a cultural bond between run-
away slaves and the Native Americans that hid them: the
parading of various Mardi Gras Native American groups
headed by chiefs and “shrouded in secrecy.” Africans and
Native Americans had found commonality as oppressed
subcultures and forged connections. When groups of black
men, sometimes referred to as “gangs” or “tribes,” began
dressing up like Native Americans and parading on impro-
vised street routes during celebration, there were some-
times violent encounters among the various groups.
Today, the complex and ornamental costumes worn by
the revelers are central to the identity of Mari Gras Indi-
ans. Th ese costumes are magnifi cent constructions that are
hand-sewn at great expense by individuals who spend sev-
eral months every year preparing the intricate beading and
feathered regalia with great care. Th ese colorful costumes,
when worn during Carnival in contemporary society, be-
came a source of celebration and competitiveness between
the various groups. Costume competitiveness has replaced
much of the violence formerly associated with the Mardi
Gras Indian celebrations. Th ese syncretistic practices cou-
pled with Caribbean infl uences evidence cultural traditions
that survive in contemporary New Orleans culture and are
displayed publicly during Mardi Gras celebrations by men
who dress as Native Americans during street reveling.
Other events of historical signifi cance to New Orleans
Mardi Gras include the Illinois Club formed during Jim
Crow for purposes of providing a ball for people of color.
Although women were initially allowed to join the club,
it soon became an all-male organization. Th is formal ball
stood in sharp contrast to the Baby Dolls, a group of pros-
titutes who, beginning in 1912, dressed up and paraded
through the streets dressed in bonnets and ribbons. Yet
another Mardi Gras tradition that formed in the fi rst part
of the 20th century was the Krewe of Zulu, a group origi-
nally established in 1909 under the name “Th e Tramps,”