Louisiana has reported 9,150 COVID-19 cases as of this writing.
Louisiana has become one of the top states for the rate of spread of coronavirus and Mardi Gras has been blamed. The massive carnival was held on Feb. 25, 2020. About 1.4 million people take to the streets during the city’s Fat Tuesday parades and festivities. The Trump administration was still downplaying the risks of the virus to public health at the time. Local New Orleans authorities believed Trump when he said there was nothing to worry about.
However, Mardi Gras is not to blame for the mounting coronavirus crisis in New Orleans, Thomas J. Adams and Cedric Johnson wrote for Jacobin magazine. “It’s a consequence of deep class divides and decimated public health infrastructure.”
