Sexual Freedom Parade History
This year will mark our 25th Naughty N’awlins event and our 20th Sexual Freedom Parade.. This is how it all got started.
In the beginning…
From 1999 through 2002 we used to host our Naughty N’awlins event out in Kenner, by the
airport. In 2003 we decided to move downtown to our current location at the Astor Crowne
Plaza Hotel. That year we had an impromptu “parade” the wrong way down Bourbon St as we
weaved in an out of traffic on our way to a club in the 700 block of Bourbon St.
We didn’t have a purpose for a parade, we just wanted to head from the hotel to the venue for
our party for those coming in early (on a Wednesday) and people loved the parade-like
experience so we decided to do it again the following year and thought we might make it
more formal, maybe hire a band and get the police involved as an escort (because second line
parades are a “thing” here in New Orleans).
In 2005 Katrina came and we had to move our event to Vegas that year. No parade. A group of
us were in Vegas that year thinking how we really wished we were parading down Bourbon St
as we were still in shock during the aftermath of Katrina. That year made having a parade more
important to us than ever and we vowed to parade again.
And this time, it would be different.
A Proper Parade
In 2006 we returned back to New Orleans as we had a full year to recover and plan post-
Katrina. This time, we applied for a proper parade permit with the city and we were approved
for a parade of 300 people with a brass band and a police escort. We would go from the 700
block of Bourbon St to colette (in the CBD) for our Wednesday Night kickoff party.
We went in the wrong direction down Bourbon St (against the one-way traffic), something that we
were told had never been approved before, by the city.
We told people that they could wear masks if they were concerned about being seen marching
in a parade with a bunch of “swingers”. I was surprised by how many wore masks back then.
We didn’t call it the “Sexual Freedom Parade” back then, we were just a bunch of kinky people
heading out to our party, but we were doing it New Orleans style, with handkerchiefs,
umbrellas, and beads. Lots of beads.
Having the police escort changed everything. It made it more real. More accepted by the
community. The Chief (Captain) of the 6th District Police Department led the parade in his
cruiser and there was another cruiser at the back of the parade. When we ended at colette and
it briefly turned into a block party and we danced with the brass band while they played
traditional New Orleans music before heading inside to the party at colette.
Growing & Changing
For the next three years (ending in 2008) we marched the wrong way down Bourbon Street, we
crossed Canal and continued against traffic on Carondelet until we turned the wrong way on
Gravier St (do you see a pattern here) until we got to colette.
In 2009, when I applied for a permit, the city said they could no longer go the wrong way down
Bourbon St. To be honest, it was about the same time we had decided that we had outgrown
colette and needed a larger space, so we decided to march from the hotel to the 700 block of
Bourbon St, to the Tricou House. We basically reversed our course and the route shortened our
parade by a couple of blocks.
In 2009 we decided to alter the look and feel of our “sexy parade” and we made signs
promoting sex-positive sayings like “Monogamy isn’t natural”, My marriage works”, “Support
Sexual Freedom” and other signs that sent a message that we were demanding tolerance.
To me, this is when the parade went from a fun social event to one spreading a message and to
raise awareness in society so that people can break free from the stigma and biases that
surround them.
In 2015 the parade was canceled because of a really bad storm and the Police just wouldn’t let
us parade because of lightning in the French Quarter. We sent everyone upstairs and we even
rolled our parade floats back in forth between the two ballrooms.
“When life gives you lemons… just do a shot and throw extra beads and it will all be all right.”
The party was great, even though the parade was canceled. We finally had enough room
(between the two ballrooms) for our Wednesday night party as it became an annual tradition to
come in early so people could participate in the parade.
In 2016 we decided to move the Wednesday night party to the hotel because we needed a
larger space and the party in 2015 was a big hit. By doing this, we were able to make the
parade longer. We started at Canal St, then went down to the 800-block and turned on St. Anne
St. We came back down Royal St until finally returning to Canal St and the main entrance to the
hotel. This route, because it was longer, allowed a lot more people to see us and the number of
signs grew until the parade finally looked more like a Pride parade.
This is exactly what we had always hoped for. Fewer people wearing masks, more standing up
for what they believe in, with most creating signs that meant something personal to themselves.
Rainbows and flags denoting attendees’ sexuality (especially bisexuality) were now becoming
more and more popular.
Bigger & Better
In 2022 we changed the parade once again, to the House of Blues, where our Sexual Freedom
Ball took place. In 2023 we are starting at the Astor Hotel, then going up to take a left on
Baronne St until we get to the corner of the N.O.P.S.I. Hotel before turning left on Gravier. We
will pass colette before turning left on Carondelet and then finally right again on Canal St to
make the final march to the Fillmore.
We are expecting a record crowd this year with a projected 1,500 plus participants. We hope
you will join us for our 20th parade, during our 25th Naughty N’awlins.
Expanding to other cities
This year we are expanding to two more cities. There will be Sexual Freedom Parades to
coincide with Pride events in both Denver and Las Vegas.
The Las Vegas Sexual Freedom Parade will be part of our Naughty Sin City event. We love that
we are expanding the typical pride parades to include kink, ethical non-monogamy and
polyamory to parades which normally focus solely on the LGBTQ communities.
You can learn more about the Sexual Freedom parades at SexualFreedomWeek.com.