Each year, a flock of two dozen, large flamboyant pink flamingos land in the LSU lakes, meaning one thing: Spanish Town Mardi Gras is near.
These plywood birds are claimed by Baton Rouge locals who boat or paddle out to the lakes, with this prideful practice first beginning 1981. Once collected, these birds will sit on the front porch of homes and businesses throughout Mid City. The “adoption” of the birds began as a small, Spanish Town neighborhood celebration; however, it has since become Baton Rouge’s biggest Mardi Gras tradition.
As a mascot for the parade, the pink flamingo represents the saying “poor taste is better than no taste at all,” which has become a mantra for Spanish Town. This historic district of Baton Rouge was established in 1805 and is most known for its Mardi Gras parade, which has been celebrated annually on the Saturday before Mardi Gras since 1981.
The Baton Rouge Spanish Town parade represents the spunky spirit of Spanish Town, with the color and creativity telling Baton Rouge residents that being quirky is the new normal. This parade and krewe sets itself apart from other Mardi Gras parades throughout Louisiana, with its lively floats, satirical themes and one unmistakable symbol: the pink flamingo.
Every year, the parade is organized by the Mystic Krewe for the Preservation of Lagniappe in Louisiana (SPLL). SPLL has donated $1.4 million to local charities that they raise via donations from krewe members. Robert King, president of SPLL, has held this title for the past five years. King began riding in the parade in 1983, when the parade only consisted of neighborhood kids walking down Spanish Town Road, beating cardboard boxes and having fun.
“If you ever ride in it, you see the smiling faces, people begging for beads,” King said. “It’s such a great adventure.”
In 1984, King remembers Spanish Town residents beginning to incorporate pickup trucks in the parade route and it only grew from there. Now, the parade is about two miles long, with 75 floats, each float holding up to 50 riders.
“One of the great things about Spanish town is it’s friendly to people where they can go through and experience it and get to see everything firsthand before they roll,” King said. “We’re not your typical Mardi Gras parade.”
The parade is known for its unique and out-of-the-box experience. Parade-goers can be seen wearing lots of pink, glitter, fur and many more crazy style choices to stand out in the crowd. Pink has become the official color of the parade because of the iconic color of the flamingo. Pink decorations and costumes are always common to see on the Saturday before Mardi Gras, making Baton Rouge natives stray away from the typical purple, green and gold.
“If we didn’t upset you then we’re not doing our job,” King said. “We call ourselves a poor man’s parade.”
The flamingo tradition only started a few years ago when the Krewe began to place pink flamingos in and around the LSU lakes, so people could steal one to let everyone across the city know that Spanish Town parade and ball would be coming up. The Krewe puts as many as 150 flamingos around town every year.
Since the LSU lakes have been under construction, flamingos have been added to various places in and out of Baton Rouge, with hopes of expanding the parade’s reach.
“The flamingo is our spirit animal,” King said. “If you ever see how peaceful and serene a flamingo is standing there on one leg, and they just look like nothing bothers them in the world, and they just look happy to be there.”
Not only does the parade stand out with its foolery, but the Krewe also does good for the community. Every year, the parade riders organize meals for the police working the event. The krewe also donates around $80,000 to $100,000 to local charities including the Children’s Advocacy Center, Baton Rouge Food Bank, Dreams Come True and Folds of Honor.
The Krewe begins lining up around 9 a.m on the day of the parade and welcomes people to come by for a close up look of the floats. The parade always begins at noon and starts the route on Spanish Town Road, heading to Ninth, North, Fourth, Main, Ninth, Laurel, Fourth, Florida, Seventh to Convention streets and River Road, ending at North Street.
“I don’t know what it is about Spanish Town, but it makes people smile and enjoy life.”
