In New Orleans, bereavement at times is a different beast — one marked by jubilant brass bands, twirling parasols, and cultural dances borrowed from eras past. A second line funeral is a funeral without a body, a procession meant to honor the deceased with equal amounts of reverence and joy.
On Saturday, the New Orleans second line tradition traveled 395 miles north and found purpose in Midtown, Memphis as hundreds of Mid-Southerners gathered by the Levitt Shell to mourn the passage Amendment 1 - the amendment to the state constitution that allows legislators to enact stricter restrictions on abortion.
The morning after the passage of Amendment 1, Sarah Ledbetter, one of the founders of the Memphis Dance Makers, woke up with a distinct desire to turn her post-election dismay into something positive.
“I just felt that, at this moment, we had all this attention and energy bubbling to the surface, and I was tired of turning it backwards into complaining or depression, I decided to harness it,” said Ledbetter.
Along with fellow dancer Bethany Wells, Ledbetter organized the Second Line Funeral for Everyone’s Reproductive Rights. Armed only with Facebook and word of mouth as promotional tools, news of the Second Line funeral quickly spread.
“Our culture does not deal with death very comfortably, and a second line gives us the opportunity to be responsible for the legacy of what has died,” said Ledbetter, adding that almost everyone she knew who was deeply disturbed by the passage of Amendment One felt, “personally responsible to someone who had fought before them to speak up now and act up.”
This acting up translated to more than 200 parade participants marching to an upbeat jazz band while strutting in their finest black garments pierced with flashes of gold balloons and brightly colored scarves. Signs reading, ‘Did I shed my lining for this?’ and ‘Reproductive rights are human rights” could be seen bobbing among the umbrellas and parasols. For some, it was a desperately needed catharsis.
“The reason I wanted to go to the second line was because I had been feeling a little lost since the amendment passed. I just needed to be in a positive place,” said community organizer Cara McLane.
McLane was one of the main volunteer organizers for the Vote No on One campaign, contributing hundreds of hours of unpaid time to inform Shelby Country residents of the proposed amendment. Now that the amendment is passed, McLance took Saturday’s Second Line event to recharge.
“I felt pretty good, just doing something positive and being together restored some of my strength for the work that we have to do that I know is down the line this year,” said McLane.
While Saturday’s Second Line event was met with some puzzled looks from onlookers as police blocked intersections to allow for two hundred dancing parade participants to pass, the reaction was largely met with enthusiastic drivers honking their horns in support, and at times to the rhythm of the leading bass drum.
For Ledbetter, it was mission accomplished.
“I’ve been to a lot of protests,” said Ledbetter, “and I had been having a hard time sustaining the life of a protester. Instead I thought, ‘Let’s dance, let’s sing.’”
