We took our first middle school-only trip this spring: eight incredible days in New Orleans immersed in Black culture, history, and sisterhood!

On the All About Dat Jazz tour, we learned so much about the history of New Orleans: where the city got its name, the history of the black market (it was the selling of enslaved black people after slavery was abolished), the history of gumbo, and how black people built the city using these amazing detailed iron fixtures in the shape of Sankofas.

At Dillard University, Louisiana’s oldest HBCU, the girls learned about college life, Greek life, and student government from a group of female students. They inspired the girls, telling them to aim higher, affirming that they belong into any room they walk into, and teaching them how to confidently do a proper “HBCU introduction.” 

After Dillard, we went right into our Hurricane Katrina Tour, where we saw the Lower 9th Ward, once a major black community, now completely empty and desolate. At the site of the broken levy, we heard first-hand accounts from survivors of Katrina.

At the Backstreet Cultural Museum, we learned about the Black Masking Indians, a local Black tribe of people who wear elaborate hand-beaded suits to honor the local indigenous peoples who helped runaway slaves. They wear them for Mardi Gras and Super Sundays in a battle for the “best suit” and to our surprise there never is a clear winner.

Afterwards, a band escorted us through the Tremé neighborhood for an authentic Second Line experience! Second Lines are traditionally reserved for wedding or funeral celebrations but over the years they have expanded to celebrate community unity.

On our last full day, we went on a steamboat up and down the Mississippi River, learning more about the river (it's the 3rd largest river in the world!), the various sites along the banks, and New Orleans as a whole, and ended the day with a cooking class with Chef Dee (the head chef for the Saints Football team) where the girls made their very own gumbo!