Overview

With a well-earned reputation for tolerance of both prostitution and miscegenation, New Orleans became known as the Great Southern Babylon in antebellum times. Following the Civil War, a profound alteration in social and economic conditions gradually reshaped the city's sexual culture and erotic commerce. Historian Alecia P. Long traces sex in the Crescent City over fifty years, drawing from Louisiana Supreme Court case testimony to relate intriguing tales of people both obscure and famous whose relationships and actions exemplify the era. Long uncovers a connection between the geographical segregation of prostitution and the rising tide of racial segregation. She offers a compelling explanation of how New Orleans's lucrative sex trade drew tourists from the Bible Belt and beyond even as a nationwide trend toward the commercialization of sex emerged. And she dispels the romanticized smoke and perfume surrounding Storyville to reveal in the reasons for its rise and fall a fascinating corner of southern history. The Great Southern Babylon portrays the complex mosaic of race, gender, sexuality, social class, and commerce in turn-of-the-twentieth-century New Orleans.

Full Product Details

9780807131121

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Reviews

Storyville has become America's mythic red-light district.... Alecia Long pulls back Storyville's moth-eaten velvet draperies to reveal the district - and the city - with refreshing insight. - Houston Chronicle A welcome addition to Louisiana, southern, and women's historiography. Highly recommended. - Choice Long brilliantly charts the historical roots and evolution of the culture of commercial sexuality in New Orleans.... The result is a landmark book all should read. - Darlene Clark Hine, coauthor of A Shining Thread of Hope: The History of Black Women in America

Author Information

ALECIA P. LONG is an assistant professor of history at Georgia State University. She lives in Atlanta and New Orleans.

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