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LGBTQ+ Rights Movement in Louisiana

We have included it for context. Barrett Delong Church is showing me a giant william howard gay new orleans Mardi Gras float that his husband will be riding on in the Krewe of Armenius den. Armenius is an all male, gay krewe, and it celebrated its 50th anniversary this year.

Obviously what I should have called TriPod. And it was. I was there. The ball was held at Mardi Gras World. Hundreds of people showed up, many in black tie, to see these flamboyant costumes in action. People sat in tuxes and gowns at tables, picking at cheese plates and pounding drinks, as krewe members pranced around the space, one by one, blowing kisses to the cheering crowds from inside their flamingoes, streetcars, you name it.

When the queen came out, rose-petal-like confetti fell from the ceiling. It was a sight to behold. Armenius is one of just a handful of gay krewes that still holds an annual ball. But decades ago, at one given time, there were over 20 gay krewes. These krewes, and krewe members, pioneered this art form, the gay carnival ball, back when it was, essentially, a crime.

His book, published inis the first comprehensive history of gay carnival. Then, ina new anti-sodomy law passed. Gay culture went largely underground, and so did Gay carnival. You couldn't dance with someone of the same sex. But there was one exception…. Mardi Gras Day. The first gay Krewe in New Orleans formed inin the wake of McCarthyism and the Lavender Scare, a witch hunt against gay people in the government.

The Krewe called itself the krewe of Yuga. Secret language to find out, safely, if someone else was gay. You gay? More than just entertainment, they were places of refuge for the gay community. And a place for networking, much like benevolent societies and social aid and pleasure clubs.

And your friends. And so one of the first big challenges for the krewe of Yuga was finding a physical safe space, for their first ball. It was held there again the next year, inand over people showed up.