COVID Relief Fund for 9th Ward Black Hatchet Tribe

Help the 9th Ward Black Hatchet Tribe keep sewing.

The 9th Ward Black Hatchet are a Mardi Gras Indian tribe from the Lower 9th Ward in New Orleans. They mask on Mardi Gras, Super Sunday, St. Joseph’s Day and perform at shows, community events and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.

Masking is a tradition that stretches back to the nineteenth century. Mardi Gras Indians pride themselves on making a new costume or “suit,” as they call it, each year. It is a time-consuming labor of love. Indians sketch the year’s design and images on canvas patches and then take needle and thread to sew small, colorful glass beads on the canvas patches to make the designs come alive like a vivid mosaic. This process of creating a new suit takes a year.

It is expensive tradition, especially for the 9th Ward Black Hatchet tribe. They are known for the intricate beadwork and elaborate color schemes of their suits. “If you want to be a 9th Ward Black Hatchet, you have to be dedicated to sewing,” Big Chief Dowee explained. “You have to do your homework, put in your needle and thread, and get that sewing done.”
 
The COVID-19 pandemic has shut down all events in New Orleans and deprived the tribe of income from masking and entertaining. In addition, several members of the tribe have been laid off from their jobs. This relief fund will provide monetary aid to the 9th Ward Black Hatchet Tribe to purchase materials for next year’s suit so tribe members can continue to work on their panels in these uncertain times.

Please consider making a donation so this remarkable, longstanding culture will continue. Big Chief Dowee has approved this campaign and all funds raised will go to the Big Chief for supplies.

The fundraisers—Randy and Christy—are based in Georgia. Randy works as a curator in Atlanta and Christy is a professional photographer in Athens.

We met the tribe last year and they welcomed us like family. As you know, New Orleans has been hit particularly hard by COVID-19. We asked the tribe if we could do anything to help during this difficult time. They agreed to let us host this campaign on their behalf. We hope this show of support conveys everyone’s appreciation for the inspiration and entertainment they provide in the 9th Ward, New Orleans and beyond.