Mardi Gras: Madness or Mantra for NEO?
by Andy Birol, President, Birol Growth Consulting

from Cool Cleveland columnist Andy Birol http://www.AndyBirol.com

I’ve just come back from Mardi Gras.

Why is it that so many eyebrows shoot up when I tell people I went to Mardi Gras? From this most foreign of all United States, the very phrase seems to roil the morality of many of my neighbors as they imagine inebriated mobs, public indecency, voodoo sacrifices and, in a word, sacrilege. Raise the topic of Mardi Gras and chances are the conversation will end with an admonishment as flat as a Midwestern vowel: We certainly don’t want any of that around here!

With the sounds of zydeco fresh in my memory, I ask Northeast Ohioans to park their preconceptions at the door. Yes, everything you’ve heard about Fat Tuesday is true, but you don’t have to lose your inhibitions to enjoy it. Mardi Gras is both more and less than most people expect, depending on their perspective. Speaking as someone with a vital interest in reigniting this region’s economy, I wonder how a city in a swamp manages to throw one of the world’s greatest parties year after year after year.

Think about it. With the exception of Rio, where else in the world is the place to be on the day before Ash Wednesday? Yet, Greater New Orleans is one of our nation’s poorest regions, with high rates of unemployment, illiteracy, and violent crime. The local economy is overly dependent on the “smokestack” industries of gas and oil, and the relentless humidity combines with particulates to create air quality worthy of hell. (In New Orleans, for much of the year, lungs don’t breathe; they drink.) Known for its brutal politics and murder rates, the city simply doesn’t have a lot to be thankful for. Except Mardi Gras.

Why does it matter? Mardi Gras is a fun, fizzy cocktail; what you get from blending Christian pageantry, tribal traditions, and modern-day consumerism. For New Orleans this has evolved into a region-wide collaboration of the wealthy, middle-class, and poor alike. Schools, churches, parishes (think counties) and businesses all join to create an annual epic of parades, music, food, and traditions with something appealing for everyone. From 50 family-friendly parades to adults-only balls to “R”-rated escapades on Bourbon Street, virtually anyone finds a suitable way to celebrate Fat Tuesday. This year, despite an early calendar, colder weather, and no Spring Breakers in attendance, 100,000 participants put on a 24/7 bash for better than a million people, which generated over a billion dollars for the New Orleans economy.

Yes, that’s one billion dollars. Do I sense eyebrows shooting up?

The fact is that New Orleans is a city much like Cleveland...but it has created an international brand. What can we in Northeast Ohio learn from the Big Easy?

1. Fun sells: Whatever your moral convictions, it’s hard to resist the fun of Mardi Gras. From the costumes to the bands to the bars to the dancing on the streets, joy fills the air. We need that kind of energy here. When we think about where to build a convention center, we should be more interested in how and where we are going to entertain visitors than where we are going to have them work. Returning the Flats to a playground for adults—through gambling—makes more economic sense than creating another “Family Friendly” haven. Let’s learn from Las Vegas, which is returning to its roots.

2. Compromise is not defeat: Red and Blue, Black and White, rich and poor, Mardi Gras is as divided racially and economically, as is Cleveland’s political base. But in New Orleans everyone knows where their bread is buttered: it’s called tourism. From the parade spectators and the organizers who work and wait patiently for parades to roll, to the Bourbon Street State Police who are ambassadors one minute and storm troopers the next, New Orleaners understands that their Mardi Gras is an asset that requires compromise and cooperation. The politicians inside and outside I-480 should take note. Despite every obstacle short of war, America’s largest free celebration has almost always prevailed. Maybe someday we in Cleveland will replace conferences on poverty with planning sessions for a music festival celebrating our Rock Hall and new Waterfront.

3. Commitment pays off: Mardi Gras involves an enormous investment of time, passion, money, and energy. The hotels, public services, businesses, schools, and governments plan all year round for a twenty-day party. And the spillover effects have been enormous. New Orleans holds the world’s best jazz festival, the Superdome has hosted countless sports championships, and the city’s fascinating French/Cajun/African heritage of food, music, and arts invigorate every activity and event. In Cleveland, our ongoing debates on gambling, reviving the Flats, reinventing the Waterfront, starting a Lake Erie ferry or building a bridge must end. We have more assets and leveragable resources than New Orleans. From our claim to “owning Rock and Roll” to a lakefront just as promising as Chicago’s, this city is ripe for reinvention. There is no time like the present.

4. Autonomy is possible: Much to my amazement, Mardi Gras is prohibited from having corporate sponsors. Despite the clamors of Coke, Budweiser, and countless other mega-marketers, New Orleans’ people, participants and parties pay for their revelry. So for those who say that staging a “Mardi Gras” means selling out our values, I disagree. We can put our own spin on our party and keep a firm hold on our destiny.

Maybe I am just dreaming of all the fun I had and wish it were right outside my door, but I bet I’m not alone. The more hardship and struggle a region has, the more ready it is to break free and have fun. As BB King says, “To be good, you have to hurt to sing the blues.” Maybe our time is coming.

from Cool Cleveland contributor Andy Birol
abirol@andybirol.com

Comments? Send them to: Letters@CoolCleveland.com

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