Celebrating the End of Reconstruction With a Mardi Gras Tribute to the Aryan Race

As white rule was being restored in state capitals across the South in 1877, the Krewe of Comus celebrated the alleged supremacy of the white race at its Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans. Twenty-three floats told the story of the rise of the Aryan Race from Ancient Egypt through 1976! Apparently they could predict the future, and the future looked Aryan.

New Orleans Daily Democrat
Wednesday, Feb 14, 1877
New Orleans, LA
Vol:2
Page:9
The New Orleans Times described the theme for the parade.
Here the paper described the fictional characteristics of the Aryans portrayed in the Comus parade.
Times-Picayune
Wednesday, Feb 14, 1877
New Orleans, LA
Page:2
The Krewe of Momus staged its own politicized Mardi Gras celebration in which the members of the Grant administration was depicted as demonic inhabitants of Hades. Grant himself was Beelzebub. As you can imagine, this swing at Grant was not taken lightly in a city which had witnessed intense outbreaks of political violence. This led to an official report on the parade:

 

Times-Picayune
Tuesday, Feb 13, 1877
New Orleans, LA
Page: 8

An admission card to the 1877 Momus Ball.

 

Read all our articles on Mardi Gras during Reconstruction.

 

 

 

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Author: Patrick Young

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