This piece was a labor of love. It took not one or two but three trips to New Orleans to bring this story to life. The Black Masking Indians are sacred to Nola.

The entire affair is in honour of the Indigenous people that helped protect runaway slaves. The culture is very secretive and it took a lot of trust building to gain access.

I shot most of this piece myself. If you look close enough you can find me filming in the crowd.

They wanted to maintain their dignity as human beings. "I'm a man. I'm the big chief . I won't bow down on that dirty ground." - Dr. Maurice M. Martinez

Want more Nola? Check out my piece on Dook Chase.