Like second lines, Mardi Gras Indians are a neighborhood tradition — put together by community members for the benefit of others in that community. People spend thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours, all to engage in a tradition with their neighbors and whoever else might come by. If you come to visit during Mardi Gras or the Catholic holiday St Joseph’s Day, you can find the Indians parading through their neighborhoods.
If you want to celebrate civil rights history, New Orleans offers a lot to choose from. The largest uprising of enslaved people in the U.S. happened in 1811 just outside the city limits. After the Civil War, Louisiana had the first African-American governor in U.S. history, P.B.S. Pinchback, who served for a mere four weeks in office. In 1892 a black New Orleanian named Homer Plessy participated in a direct action that brought the first (unsuccessful) legal challenge to the doctrine of “separate but equal” — the challenge that became the Supreme Court case ofPlessy v. Ferguson.
In 1970 the local chapter of the Black Panther Party had a standoff with the police in the Desire housing development, and hundreds of residents came out and forced the police to retreat. You can connect with some aspects of this history through Louisiana’s African American Heritage Trail, which even has its own iPhone app.
In short, New Orleans is a city to visit whether you want to celebrate a history of civil rights struggles or dance all night to live music. A city of stunning architecture, music and food unlike anywhere else in the world. A place you may never want to leave.
And when you do leave, note that our airport is named Louis Armstrong International Airport.
Who is your city’s airport named after? 
Read the full story: TheRoot.com
