Southern Decadence 2015

A 5-day weekend of costumes, parties and parades celebrating the LGBT community, Southern Decadence brings over 150,000 people and a nearly $200 million economic impact. We caught the tail of the rerouted Friday night parade but were there in plenty of time for the 41st Southern Decadence Sunday parade, an exuberant procession of dance troupes and pride groups in festive and fabulous costumes. This years theme of “Swimmin’ with the Gods and Goddesses!” was punctuated with lavender, lime and silver.

Festigals and Gay Pride Parades

Saturday was a day of drag with the Festigals and Gay Pride parades . Ladies first. Last year, Festigals’ Stiletto Stroll was my first ever parade as a Pussyfooter. It’s a sassy woman-centric second line through the French Quarter during the Festigals’ weekend getaway of yoga, empowerment and success panels, shopping, cooking demonstrations and networking events. This year, they added a new fundraiser, the Stiletto Sprint, benefitting the Breast Center at Ochsner Baptist. It’s a 2 block race on Royal Street in minimum 3″ heels – costumes encouraged. The supremely leggy Tammy McCormick Broussard won the race, passing superwoman and other superheroes in her sky-high red heels.