African-American Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs, like the Money Wasters, dance spiritedly to the music of neighborhood brass bands at jazz funeral parades in New Orleans. Photo by Diane Wanek. Parading is another cultural expression cherished by New Orleanians. Mardi Gras, or Shrove Tuesday, celebrated the day before Lent begins, is a community-wide celebration that embraces all segments of society. Garbed in elaborate feather and bead costumes and identifying themselves as tribes to emulate and honor Native Americans, Mardi Gras Indian tribes such as the Wild Magnolias, the Golden Star Hunters, and the Yellow Pocahontas, compete for recognition of their costume, song, and dance while parading on Mardi Gras day.
Parades also occur at other times of the year.
The marching and parading traditions inspire and incorporate specific craft traditions, such as ribbon baskets and sashes for the Benevolent Societies' marching clubs, and costume- and maskmaking for Mardi Gras. Folktales from Louisiana , co-published in 1997 by the University Press of Mississippi and the Louisiana Division of the Arts.