‘A warm welcome’: Mummers look to include more communities, groups into the tradition

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The Mummers Parade has been a cherished Philly tradition for 124 years. The display of New Year’s Day pageantry traces its roots to the city’s 19th-century immigrant communities, including the Swedish, Irish, German and English.

But throughout its history, the Mummers Parade has seen its fair share of controversy. Participating groups have been criticized for cultural insensitivity, cultural appropriation and racist attire and actions. In 2020, Mayor Jim Kenney threatened to cancel the event when several Mummers wore blackface, an action which city officials and parade organizers alike swiftly condemned.

In recent years, some Mummers have been working to include more Philadelphians from different communities and backgrounds.

“I think that those issues are in the process of being addressed,” said Mike Carwile, a member of the Golden Sunrise club in the Fancies Division. “This tradition is deeply ingrained in a lot of families and communities in Philadelphia and in the region. But even with that, a lot of clubs are realizing that they need to reach out beyond just sort of, friend of a friend, guy I went to high school with … the way that these clubs have recruited in the past. And if they’re going to keep going and keep flourishing, they have to reach out to people that don’t even know that this is an option for them.”

Carwile said part of his focus as a member of the Golden Sunrise club is to invite more people to join. He and other members often go to community events and festivals throughout Philadelphia to connect with interested participants.

Carwile said that kind of bridge building between different communities’ traditions is an important step forward.

“So many clubs are in a position right now where they are looking for people that want to make this tradition their own, and see themselves in this tradition,” he said. “And Golden Sunrise is, I’d like to think we’re particularly at the forefront of that, of just sort of getting our name out there, showing up places where you might not expect a Mummer club to be.”

On Wednesday, Carwile’s club performed for a second year with dancers from Kaos Mas, a Caribbean Carnival band from the Germantown neighborhood.

Tony Payne, CEO of Kaos Mas, is from Barbados and has lived in Philadelphia since 1983. He first met Carwile and his dad at an event at Reading Terminal Market, and invited them to perform with Kaos Más at Caribbean Carnival. In return, Carwile invited Payne and his band to join in the Mummers Parade last year.

Both Payne and Carwile said there are a lot of similarities between the Mummers and Caribbean carnival traditions.

“It is amazing how similar what they do is to what we do,” Carwile said. “They build these big, elaborate costumes. They have their own carnival parades.”

Payne also highlighted the overlap.

“What they do is close to us,” he said. “It’s just a little bit different, you know, it’s the same parading in the streets. But honestly, with us, our music is much, much louder.”

For Payne, the experience has been a positive one.

“They kind of give us a warm welcome, you know, we go to the bandhouse when they’ve got events,” he said. “They’re good people.”

On Wednesday, as Kaos Mas band members danced to soca music in front of City Hall during the Fancies presentation, the crowd cheered.

Alaysia Roberts spotted the troupe before the parade kickoff and was happy to see Black community members represented.

“We were going over there for a little bit, and we saw, like, a whole bunch of Black girls all dressed up,” she said. “And I was like, ‘Oh, I don’t think I remember them last time I was here,’ but it was a long time ago. But it is nice to see more representation.”

For some parade participants, adapting the tradition to include more communities is still a work in progress.

On Wednesday, Grace Wagenveld danced with NFUSE Dance and Fitness, a Delaware-based company that was invited to perform with the Ferko String Band for the second year in a row.

Wagenveld is Latina, and said she was heartened by the invitation. Even though she grew up in Philly, she didn’t always feel connected to the Mummers tradition, she said.

“I’ve always kind of kept arm’s length away from the Mummers,” she said. “It is a fun Philly tradition, but just because of a lot of the lash back with the different racism situations. So I wasn’t sure what to think of it, but I’m glad I’m doing it. It’s actually been really fun.”

Wagenveld said there’s still room for improvement. She said Ferko String Band’s theme was centered on Mexico’s Day of the Dead tradition, but costumes also included matador outfits, a tradition from Spain.

“It’s their kind of laziness of not paying attention to the details that should be culturally appropriate and correct, which sucks, because that would make the performance that much bigger and better,” she said.

Carwile, of Golden Sunrise, said engaging different communities is an ongoing process, but it starts with neighbors reaching out to neighbors.

“If you think this sounds fun, we want you to be a part of it,” he said.