Endymion Controversy
During the past week there has been much controversy surrounding the plans for the Krewe of Endymion’s 2007 parade. Endymion wants to parade in Mid-City, and Mid-City wants them back. But the NOPD says they don’t have enough man power to patrol both the Uptown and Mid-City parade routes simultaneously.
As a concession, the NOPD suggested that Endymion could parade in Mid-City, but only if the Saturday uptown krewes Iris and Tucks paraded there as well. Of course, nobody wants to part with tradition and Iris and Tucks got their feathers ruffled, with the Iris captain saying about Mid-City: “[Krewe members’] families will not go into that area. The area is dilapidated. It hasn’t come back at all.” This in turn pissed off plenty of Mid-City residents who have been rebuilding, because their neighborhood has actually made great strides in the past year.
Anyway, this idea was shot down rather quickly by Nagin, as he certainly does not want to piss off the uptown socialite ladies who are his bread and butter. So it has since been assumed that Endymion will be parading Uptown again, as they did last year and in 2003. However, Mid-City residents are not giving up the fight just yet and plan to take their arguments to the city council meeting on Nov. 16th.
The facts as I see them:
If people do not put up a fight to keep Endymion in Mid-City, the route change is more likely to become a permanent one.
NOPD says they do not have the manpower to police two parade routes simultaneously, as they have done for years and years. However, the police force is nearly identical in manpower to previous years and we have the National Guard and State Police here as well, not to mention fewer residents, so why should this be an issue?
Uptown residents do not necessarily want Endymion there either. This may be a sweeping generalization, but most people I know who live near the uptown route find Endymion’s crowds and huge ridership to be very excessive. Indeed, the admittedly crass nature of Endymion is better suited to the Orleans / Carrollton / Canal route, as it has wider streets and neutral grounds.
Mid-City is coming back and its residents do not deserve to be shunned this way. Endymion has departed from their traditional route twice in the past five years, why can’t other Krewes make concessions? Or why can’t things be shifted around so that other “traditional” Mid-City krewes (Krewe of Mid-City comes to mind) all parade in Mid-City together on one day?
Clearly there is room in there somewhere for a compromise, and hopefully one can be reached soon. I’d just like to paste a letter below written by someone on the Mid City Neighborhood Organization’s mailing list, as it sums this up better than I can.
Mr Fielkow,
I appreciate your quick response. I would like you to know that I did vote for you, so for what it is worth, I consider you to be responsible for representing me in the city council, or in the event that you decide not to, explaining your position to me. I am inferring from your response that you will not support Endymion rolling in Mid City, and I ask you to please explain to me why we cannot
a) Facilitate the Mid City route while allowing Tucks and Iris to roll Uptown, given that the sum of NOPD, state police, and National Guard troops is greater than the number of NOPD pre-katrina
or
b) Ask Tucks and Iris to roll in Mid-City this year as Endymion rolled uptown last year in a tit-for-tat trade until the city is back on its feet.
I also infer from your response that there is a certain dedication to Uptown that is not extended to Mid-City. I wonder if you realize how neglected Mid City feels right now — we have one of the most comprehensive rebuilding plans in the city, I believe we were the first to turn in a completed plan; we have been recognized nationally for the effort we are putting into rebuilding and the speed with which we are doing it; we have business owners who are operating at losses just to try to show support for the community; people spend every hour of daylight and quite a few of darkness working on their homes and neighborhoods trying to provide a safe, semi-normal place for friends and family to come back and live; and Endymion rolling on its normal route would mean so much to people who have been working relentlessly day and night to bring back our city. In return, we are thanked with nastygrams in the Times Picayune from the Iris Krew Captain who would do ANYTHING not to have to go to Mid City because it is dilapidated and hasn’t come back at all. Then our Mayor and our City Council follows that logic and we sacrifice our only remaining parade again.
I lived Uptown while rebuilding my house (with my own hands, by the way), and it is very easy to become disengaged from the rest of the city there. Many nights I would go out to eat, have a few drinks, and it seemed like nothing had ever happened. This is distinctly not the case in Mid City. Uptown does not need the financial benefit from Endymion as much as Mid City does, nor will it benefit from the breath of normalcy that Endymion would bring to us.
I ask for your support or an explanation for its absence, and I thank you for your time.
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excellent points. i don’t live in mid-city but am constantly amazed by their progress and strength. i’ll write a letter in support. spread that around. don’t let the city say the nopd is too small - for mardi gras or for protecting our people in general.
I ride in Endymion (I’m not crass, however) and I HATE the uptown route. We belong in Mid-City. The end. Leave Uptown to the Krewes of Bacchus (maybe not crass, but close) and Orpheus.
Just to be fair, I think NOMTOC should roll Uptown right after Iris. Just for the well-being of the NOPD and all.
Maybe we could get Choctaw back to Orleans Parish if we let them have a crack at St. Charles too.
Or could Iris just roll down General Meyer? Think of the money Blaine Kern would save on gas alone.
As a former resident of Mid=City (and current Uptown resident) I support Endymion going back to its original route. Anyone who says Mid-City hasn’t made great strides in recovery hasn’t been there. When I take visitors on the Disaster Tour, I always point out that Mid-City has recovered much faster than other flooded areas of the city.
I have not lived in New Orleans for a few years now, but have been back for every mardi gras, except last year do to some unforseen things coming up. I plan to be there this year again, but Endymion not rolling in Mid-City makes the decision a little less guaranteed that I will go. It is by far the most fun day of mardi gras and really the only parade I made a point to be at when living there and when going back. The event in mid-city on Orleans is so much more fun than any other parade and needs to be brought back.
On Orleans?
One possibility: try to convince Mid-City to move to Saturday and back to Mid-City, and to convince Iris and Tucks to roll uptown on Sunday.
That would actually give residents Uptown one day off from the madness and traffic, which I think most would welcome.
And in the end, it’s not the NOPD that makes the decision but the City Council, and we’re going to make sure Midura and Head know how important this is to us.
As for the Iris captain’s comments in the Picayune, that girl needs to get out (of Uptown) more. Perhaps if she deigns to visit NOMA for example she is delivered by helicopter, but she clearly hasn’t driven down Carrollton to the Park lately.