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New Orleans, LA.  The Louisiana Basque-American Society & Cultural Organization (LABASCO) will celebrate Aberri Eguna (Day of the Basque Homeland) to the fullest with dinner and various cultural and social activities that will take place on April 20^th.  This club is the meeting place for the Basque community in the state of Louisiana, an area where the Basque presence “goes back to 1698,” according to Michel-Antoine Goitia-Nicolas founding member and head of LABASCO.

The Aberri Eguna even includes a complete program of activities that will take place at the Galvez restaurant in New Orleans.  The day will begin at 2pm with a screening of the following documentaries: Orson Welles in the Basque Country and Ama Lur.  Following, at 4pm there will be a Basque dance and local folkloric dance exhibition, thanks to the “Komenka Ethnic Dance & Music Ensemble.”

Mayors and pirates

The evening will continue with a talk on the Basque history of Louisiana, thanks to Michel-Antoine Goitia-Nicolás.  Goitia-Nicolas is a descendant of people from Elantxobe, in Biscay. He explains that  “a large part of the Cajuns and the majority of the French Creole and Spanish are, in reality, Basques.  New Governors of Louisiana in the colonial era were Basques,” he affirms, “like the first Catholic Bishop of Louisiana.  There have been several mayors of Basque origin, including Etienne Mauleon, the first mayor of New Orleans; Jean Seguin, Basque from Baiona and founder of the New Orleans port; families like Ajubita, have been captains of the Mississippi since the beginning: as well as Jean Lafitte and a large number of local pirates…” he says.  A large number of stories and characters that Goitia-Nicolas will cover in his talk.

The event will end with dinner and performances starting at 7pm with a traditional Basque-Creole dinner.  “You can’t eat in New Orleans without enjoying the contributions of the Basque-Creole families like the Begue, Tujague, Galatoire, Casenave, Esparbe, Maylie and Dufossat,” says Goitia-Nicolas.  Cost of the dinner is $50 for members and$60 for non-members.  Space is limited so reservations are required by contacting the club via email.

-Check the club's website