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Note: We use the spelling "Voodoo" to denote those
practices found in the United States that do not have an initiatory lineage which
can be directly traced to African origins.
New Orleans Voodoo at a Glance
By Mambo Michele
The question of what exactly is New Orleans Voodoo is challenging.
There is some controversy within the community of Vodouisants regarding New Orleans
Voodoo. Many feel that New Orleans Voodoo simply is a marketing tool of the City
of New Orleans. Others feel it is a deep and hidden portion of New Orleans culture
that is only just beginning to get the respect it deserves. The truth probably
lies somewhere in between these two views.
New Orleans Voodoo is a collection of practices handed down through
oral tradition from African slaves. New Orleans Voodoo was practiced, in large
part, for the purpose of improving the lives of its practitioners. The tradition
has evolved over time from a mainly African tradition to one that has been influenced
by virtually every culture that has lived in South Louisiana, most notably Native
American mysticism and Catholicism. Voodoo practitioners do "work" to help people
navigate the challenges of life more effectively. This work may consist of burning
candles, praying to God, the Virgin Mary, the angels and the saints, making gris-gris
(talismans), or other activities that are designed to influence the outcome of
a person's situation.
There is some dispute about the origins of New Orleans Voodoo.
As one researches the subject, one finds conflicting views about how New Orleans
Voodoo evolved into what it is today. One thing, however, is clear: New Orleans
had a rich heritage of African influence since the first slaves came to the French
territory beginning in or around 1719. According to Gwndolyn Midlo Hall's Africans
in Colonial Louisiana: The Development of Afro-Creole Culture in the Eighteenth
Century, the Louisiana territory, and New Orleans in particular, was thoroughly
Africanized. On pages 158-159, she writes this about the reasons for the strong
African influence:
The chaotic conditions prevailing in the colony, the knowledge and
skills of the African population, the size and importance of the Indian population
throughout the eighteenth century, and the geography of lower Louisiana, which
allowed for easy mobility along its waterways as well as escape and survival in
the nearby, pervasive swamps, all contributed to an unusually cohesive and heavily
Africanized culture in lower Louisiana: clearly, the most Africanized slave culture
in the United States.
Given these remarks, it is easy to conclude that the religious
practices of Africans survived, in part, for the same reasons. It already has
been established that the numbers of slaves that actually came to North America
straight from Africa were relatively small as compared to those sent to Latin
America and the Caribbean . Further, the slaves in North America routinely were
mixed up and sold off by the slave-owners to discourage the slaves from banding
together into tribal groups that might have given strength to potential uprisings.
However, unlike in Haiti where a long period of isolation after the Haitian Revolution
afforded the culture an opportunity to develop relatively undisturbed, the slaves
of North America never had such a period during which to more fully reconstruct
their religious practices. The constant watch of government and church officials
made it difficult to maintain the religious side of the African practices, particularly
after the Americans purchased the Louisiana territory. Hence, the organized and
outward practice of the religions tended to fall by the wayside in favor of the
"work," which could be done individually and in private without arousing the suspicions
of the authorities.
The major dispute in the Vodou community seems to be whether or
not the slaves in South Louisiana managed to overcome language, cultural, and
other barriers sufficiently to develop a solid spiritual lineage similar to what
developed in Haiti and Santo Domingo. This question may never be adequately answered.
What we do know is that the strong African influences in South Louisiana had an
impact on all segments of the culture: French, Spanish, Creole, and American.
Since African slaves and their descendants were the nannies, maids and confidants
of many a slave holder and their children, the ways of the Africans often made
their way into non-slave culture in and around New Orleans in a way that may not
have occurred in other parts of the US. It is not uncommon to hear accounts of
non-blacks (women in particular) talking about the charms their nannies or chambermaids
gave them to help them with some problem or another. Naturally, many of these
charms were likely passed down by generations, even within the French and Creole
(both white and black) families of Louisiana. How much has been lost is difficult
to ascertain; fortunately, much has been retained through family lore.
New Orleans was, until fairly recently, predominantly a catholic
city. One could argue, even now, that New Orleans is one of the most catholic
cities in the United States. This is because until the Americans purchased the
Louisiana territory the controlling powers were either France or Spain, both historically
catholic countries. Just as the African slaves in Haiti, Santo Domingo, and Brazil
and the native peoples of Latin America disguised their spirits under the catholic
saints, so did the slaves of South Louisiana. The major difference between what
occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean versus South Louisiana seems to be
the loss of the clear connection between the African entities and their catholic
counterparts over time. Hence, where in Haiti one often finds an association between
Moses or St. Patrick and the lwa (spirit) Damballa, in New Orleans no such association
survived. One prays to Moses or to St. Patrick in New Orleans; one does not pray
to Papa Damballa disguised as Moses.
It must be stated here that today there is a new generation of
Voodoo practitioners in New Orleans that is helping to restore the religious traditions
to the practice of New Orleans Voodoo. As is happening all over the world, many
people have been moved to initiate into various African Traditional Religions
(ATRs) such as Dahomean Vodun, Haitian Vodou, Santeria, Candomble, or other African
or Afro- Caribbean traditions. These practitioners are reincorporating the religious
side of the ATRs into New Orleans Voodoo. Therefore, it is not uncommon to read
books about New Orleans Voodoo by modern-day practitioners that refer to the lwa
of Haiti or the Orisha of Cuba as being part of the New Orleans Voodoo tradition
. This is, however, a relatively new phenomenon.
While some people debate the merits of this mixing of traditions,
one cannot deny that it is occurring. In many ways, it resembles the movement
of the spirits of Africa to the "New World" during the middle passage. The ancient
spirits spread themselves to another land in the hearts, minds, and blood of the
children of Africa who were carried here as slaves. The spirits fought against
great odds to take root in the Western Hemisphere. They helped their children
to develop new versions of their ancient traditions in Brazil, the Caribbean,
Honduras, and the United States. Now, once again, the spirits of Africa are spreading
their energy in the West.
Ayibobo!
© May 2002 by Mambo
Michele. All rights reserved.
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