New Orleans – A cherished tradition in which neighbors fall in behind wailing jazz parades is being threatened by the crime wave that has gripped this city famous for its street parties.
Amid the violence, police have sharply raised the fees they charge social clubs that organize the so-called “second-line” parades – so named because people along the route join in to form a second line behind the main marchers.
Gunfire marred two such parades in 2006, killing one person, and police more than tripled the fees charged for escorts who usually clear the route.
The processions create a lengthening column of revelers waving handkerchiefs or clapping and dancing as music blares from a brass band. They are a fixture in the black community and a hallmark of New Orleans culture.
Police insist the money is needed to pay for extra officers and overtime. But parade organizers say the price increases have put a damper on festivities in neighborhoods slowly recovering from Hurricane Katrina.
Second-line escort fees rose from around $1,200 to $3,700 or more after the 2006 shootings. For example, a club called the Original Pigeontown Steppers got a bill for $7,500 to cover their annual Easter procession.
The group enlisted aid from the American Civil Liberties Union and claimed in court that the fees violate the club’s right of free expression.
“There’s no way we could ever pay that,” said Joe Henry, president of the club, which has just six parading members. “This isn’t a rich man’s club.” More than 30 such parading groups existed before Katrina dispersed the city’s population. Perhaps 20 to 25 clubs remain.
“They’re taxing us higher than anyone else in the city,” said Tamara Jackson, president of the Social Aid and Pleasure Club Task Force. “It’s like they want to stamp out our culture.” Fees are unchanged for police to accompany jazz funerals in which mourners parade on the way back from a cemetery burial.
In its lawsuit against the police department, the ACLU called the fees for second-line parades “arbitrary and unreasonable.” ACLU attorney Katie Schwartzmann noted that well-heeled groups called “krewes” that put on huge Mardi Gras parades pay much lower fees.
“They say it’s because of violence, but that’s ridiculous. The Mardi Gras krewes pay $750 and those are much larger parades,” Schwartzmann said. “The crowds are much larger and the opportunity for violent crimes much greater.” Indeed, smaller parades seem to entail higher costs. Police said Bourbon Street club owner Chris Owens, who leads an annual Easter parade through the French Quarter, pays a $2,700 fee.
After a court hearing last week on the fees, City Attorney Joe DiRosa said the second lines are distinct from highly organized Mardi Gras parades.
For instance, the large parades use major thoroughfares and have barricades separating participants from parade-goers. In second lines, observers often join the parades, which take place on narrow neighborhood streets.
This Easter, a compromise saved the Pigeontown Steppers’ march.
DiRosa said police cut the fee to $2,413 after re-evaluating personnel needs.
Litigation affecting other clubs continues, Schwartzmann said.
But she hopes an agreement can be reached.
“Something has to happen if second-lining is going to continue,” Jackson said. “We’re the only culture that is being taxed out of existence, and we’re one of the oldest cultures that exist in this city.”
