The Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club (1916) is the largest historically black carnival krewe in New Orleans. They are known for wearing grass skirts and painting their faces for their appearances as well as their parade. The costume honors the South African Zulu warriors that defeated the British army in the 1800s.

Recently, there has been a call to protest the krewe for their use of blackface. The club has defended themselves stating that "black makeup is not the same as blackface," however, the protesters claim that the makeup "reinforces racist stereotyping of black people." If you've ever been to a Zulu parade, you will know that this is far from the truth. It's a celebration of our people.

So what do you think? After 103 years, should the krewe give in and remove the makeup or should they stick to their roots?

Personally, one of the reasons I love Zulu is because of the makeup and costumes. Most krewes wear masks, whereas the makeup worn by the members of Zulu is unique to each individual. I'm afraid that their parade, which rolls Mardi Gras day, will be ruined by protesters. This makes me not even want to participate this year 😔

Anyways, here's some examples of the makeup worn by the members.

Let me also add that there doesn't seem to be any backlash for the very KKK-ish costumes worn by some of the other krewes.