TakePart’s Mardi Gras Coverage
Posted by Adriana Dunn on February 20, 2009 at 9:53 pm
CATEGORIES: Culture, Environment
It’s that time of year: Mardi Gras. It may just be the best party in the good ol’ US of A. And while we’re glad the beads will be flying and booze will be flowing, we want to take a look at some of the stories of recovery, of desperation, of unity and of community. Monday we’ll have a piece on The Field of Dreams in the 9th Ward, Tuesday a piece from Mark Newberg focused on policy, and Wednesday a look at what’s happening in Galveston, the tiny Texan island devastated by Hurricane Ike.
We also wanted to highlight a several of our previous posts in anticipation of Fat Tuesday:
- Hurricane Ike Aftermath: Inconvenient Truth of the Day
- “The Axe in the Attic” Shows the Natural and Human Costs of Hurricane Katrina
- Permanent Link to Hurricane Gustav in New Orleans, Reality Show Donates Green Home To 9th Ward
Come back early next week and check out our original pieces on the stories we think matter in the Gulf Coast region. ‘Til then, enjoy the weekend.
CATEGORIES: Culture, Environment
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Hey y’all
I so appreciate your work, and your focus. But I want to tell you, that as wasteful as mardi gras is, it’s not just about beads and booze. It is all about community building, focus, determination, talent, and just plain human faith and hope. When you watch the kids in the marching bands do their thing, you get it. Most every uniform, every instrument was destoyed, along with every hope of every child who had dreamed of having something to look forward to, work towards, and discipline himself for. It is chilling to see the Marines, Coast Guard, Citidel, Army, ROTC, and the whole military recruitment bandwagon with their fancy hummer vehicles all tricked out with lights and sound systems, occupants throwing beads to the masses. The wonderful thing is, they CAN’T TOUCH THE KIDS! They are like little matches standing next to flambeaux torches. Their marching bands and uniforms are dull, militaristic, and boring as hell…our kids will ALWAYS benefit from being in these bands, and the sight of them in huge numbers on our streets fills me with longing and hope. These kids experience what it is like to march, to use their brains and musical talent in formation with other kids, and they can get these skills without ever having to join the military. What a genius, underrated system for teaching children valuable life lessons.
Hey Magnolia, thanks so much for the comment and your perspective on the participation of the kids and what that means to you and to the community. Agreed, it’s a terribly underrated system for teaching life lessons. I wrote that we want to take a look at “stories of recovery, of desperation, of unity and of community.” Your comment is *exactly* what I was hoping to hear about, and thanks for highlighting the fact that Mardi Gras itself is one of these stories and not to be overlooked.
Thank you, Adriana! By “Can’t touch the kids”, I mean the military bands have no rhythm or groove or hope of EVER being as good as these youngsters. They are the most boring thing in the parades. Why are they even IN the parades? That’s fishy. Hmmm…