A PREMIER CARNIVAL SUPER KREWE THAT ROLLED THROUGH THE STREETS OF UPTOWN THE WEDNESDAY BEFORE FAT TUESDAY. BUT AS THE YEARS PAST ALLEGATIONS OF MISMANAGED FUNDS CAME FORWARD, AND THEN IN 2020, AN ILL FATED POST BY THE CREW’S FOUNDER, JULIE LEE, WENT VIRAL FOR ALL THE WRONG REASONS. LEE TAKES THE HOT SEAT WITH WDSU, INVESTIGATES AUBRY KILLION FOR HER FIRST ON CAMERA INTERVIEW SINCE PHOENIX WAS NIXED BY THE NEW ORLEANS CITY COUNCIL. NICK’S FOUNDER JULIE LEE, GIVING HER FIRST INTERVIEW AFTER A PERMIT WAS STRIPPED BY THE CITY WHEN IT CAME TIME TO MAKING HER CASE IN FRONT OF THE COUNCIL, SHE WAS A NO SHOW. WHY DID YOU NOT COME FORWARD YOURSELF TO COME AND DEFEND YOURSELF FOR LEGAL REASONS? I WAS ADVISED BY OUR LEGAL TEAM TO LET THE ATTORNEYS HANDLE THAT. UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, BEHIND THE SCENES PHONE CALLS WERE MADE TO MR. MORRELL’S OFFICE. THIS, YOU KNOW, COULD WE MEET IN PRIVATE? IS THIS SOMETHING WE COULD DISCUSS AGAIN, I WAS IGNORED, AND SO OUR LAWYER DECIDED TO GO AND SPEAK FOR US. AND ONE OF OUR FLOAT LIEUTENANTS. WHAT DO YOU WISH YOU WOULD HAVE CAME FORWARD WITH THAT DAY? I DON’T FEEL THAT IT WOULD HAVE MADE A DIFFERENCE. I FEEL LIKE MR. MORRELL HAD HIS MIND MADE UP ALONG WITH THE OTHER CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS, THAT THIS WAS ALREADY DECIDED BEFORE, YOU KNOW, THAT DAY. THERE WAS ALSO CONCERN OVER THESE BEADS THAT WERE APPARENTLY THROWN ADVERTISING MEMBERSHIP AND A LACK OF BANDS. LEE SAID SHE DOESN’T KNOW WHO THREW THEM AND SAYS SHE HAD SIGNED BAND CONTRACTS. ARE YOU ABLE TO TELL ME THE NAMES OF THE SCHOOLS YOU HAD? I COULD CERTAINLY FORWARD YOU THAT EMAIL AND WE HAVE ALL OF THOSE SEVEN SIGNED. ARE YOU ABLE TO TELL ME JUST OFF THE TOP OF YOUR HEAD, SOME OF THE SIGNED ONES? I KNOW YOU DON’T HAVE THEM IN FRONT OF YOU. I DON’T, I DON’T, UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, BATON ROUGE PARISH MADE A DECISION NOT TO PARADE ON CERTAIN SCHOOL NIGHTS FOR THE CARNIVAL 2025 NEXT YEAR. HOW MANY BANDS DID YOU HAVE LOCKED IN? WE HADN’T WORKED ON 25 YET. CONTROVERSIAL EXPLODED BACK IN 2020 AFTER LEE POSTED THIS PHOTO. MANY MEMBERS OUTRAGED, FINDING IT OFFENSIVE AND DISMISSIVE OF THE BLACK LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT. CIVIL UNREST SPARKED BY THE MURDER OF GEORGE FLOYD, AND OTHER INCIDENTS OF POLICE BRUTALITY AND RACIALLY MOTIVATED VIOLENCE AGAINST BLACK PEOPLE. THIS PICTURE CAUSED A LOT OF PAIN. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS, WHAT DO YOU THINK MY INTENTION WAS? IS THAT TO ME, THOSE WERE TWO LITTLE GIRLS THAT COULD BE NICK’S SISTERS. UM, AND THAT THEIR THEIR SOULS ARE THE SAME COLOR. IT DIDN’T MATTER TO TO ANY OF US. UM, YOU KNOW WHAT WE LOOKED AT, LIKE WHERE WE CAME FROM. BECAUSE IF WE ALL THOUGHT ALIKE AND WE ALL LOOKED ALIKE, HOW BORING WOULD THAT BE? MADE A MISTAKE LIKE I WAS NOT FORGIVEN. AND THIS IS CANCEL CULTURE. AND IT’S UNFORTUNATE. DO YOU PLAN ON SUING THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS? THAT’S SOMETHING THAT’S DEFINITELY BEING LOOKED INTO. IT WAS AN INNOCENT MISTAKE. DO YOU THINK THIS ONE PICTURE IS THE REASON FOR THE DOWNFALL OF NICK? I DON’T THINK IT’S THE PICTURE. I THINK IT’S THE HASHTAG. ALL LIVES MATTER. I DIDN’T KNOW. TO ME, ALL MEANT ALL. AND SO. SO, UM, IT WAS MY INTENT TO BE UNIFYING AND I’M SO SORRY FOR THE PEOPLE THAT I HURT DURING THAT. UM, I DIDN’T KNOW. I DIDN’T KNOW ANY BETTER, OR I WOULD HAVE NEVER DONE IT. YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME. WOULD YOU? HAVE NEVER POSTED IT? ABSOLUTELY NOT, ABSOLUTELY NOT. AND I WOULD ASK AGAIN FOR WHOMEVER IT HURT AND THEIR FAMILIES AND THEIR THEIR SPOUSES AND THEIR PARTNERS AND THEIR FRIENDS FOR FORGIVENESS. I WOULDN’T DO ANYTHING TO INTENTIONALLY HURT OUR MEMBERS. JULIE. SOME PEOPLE HAVE QUESTIONED IF YOU SUPPORT THOUGHT THE BLACK LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT. IS THAT SOMETHING YOU SUPPORT? I DO NOT RAISE AS A CHRISTIAN, I BELIEVE ALL MEANS ALL. EVERYBODY’S LIFE MATTERS. SO YOU DO NOT SUPPORT THE BLACK LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT JUST TO MAKE SURE I HAVE YOU? I MEAN, NO, I DON’T DO I SUPPORT AFRICAN AMERICAN PEOPLE? ABSOLUTELY. JULIE, THE FINANCES OF THE KREWE HAVE ALSO BEEN UNDER INTENSE SCRUTINY. I ASKED HOW MUCH IT COSTS TO PUT ON THIS PARADE WHEN YOU’RE TALKING 82 FLOATS, TANDEMS, YOU’RE OVER 4 OR 500,000, LEE SAYS. AT ONE POINT, SHE HAD 3500 MEMBERS, AND EACH MEMBER, SHE SAYS, PAYING ABOUT $850. SO YOU WERE BRINGING IN MORE CLOSE TO $3 MILLION. LET’S SAY 500,000 FOR THE PARADE. UM, OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD NOW, I DON’T HAVE THOSE FIGURES IN FRONT OF ME. YOU KNOW, YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT A BALL. YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT COSTUMES FOR 3500 PEOPLE. MASKS, PARADE INSURANCE. COULD BE IN EXCESS OF $60,000. A PROPERTY IN LAKEVIEW WAS LEASED. LEE CALLED IT AN OFFICE. WERE YOU EVER LIVING IN THAT HOME? ABSOLUTELY NOT. DID YOU EVER STAY THE NIGHT IN THAT HOME? I DID, I DID FROM TIME TO TIME WE WOULD HAVE BOARD MEETINGS EVERY OTHER THURSDAY NIGHT, AND IT WAS VERY LATE WHEN WE WE WOULD LEAVE. DID YOU COLLECT A SALARY? I DID, I DID, I DID, I DID COLLECT A SALARY ALONG WITH A FEW OTHER BOARD MEMBERS. AND I, UM, BECAUSE WE’RE A NONPROFIT AND A LOT OF NONPROFIT EXECUTIVES HAVE SALARIES. WHAT WAS YOUR TOP SALARY? UM, I THINK ABOUT 65,000 OTHER NON PROFITS. THE RED CROSS, YOU KNOW, BIG, HUGE NONPROFIT. IT’S THE PRESIDENT GETS A SALARY IS IT FAIR TO COMPARE THE RED CROSS TO NICK’S. YEAH IT IS BECAUSE WITHOUT THE MEMBERS SUPPORTING THE ORGANIZATION, HOW DOES IT SURVIVE FIVE I WOULD THINK THE RED CROSS IS SAVING LIVES OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF DISASTERS. I WOULD THINK THOSE ARE TWO VERY DIFFERENT THINGS. I GET THAT, BUT THE PREMISE IS THE SAME. WHILE THE DESIGNATED OF A NONPROFIT IS DIFFERENT, EX-MEMBERS HAVE ASKED LEE FOR REFUNDS TAKING LEE TO COURT. WELL, THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE FOLLOWED SUIT WILL GET A REFUND, AND THOSE ARE BEING SETTLED AS WE SPEAK ABOUT HOW MANY PEOPLE WOULD YOU SAY THAT IS 235 ROUGHLY. AND THAT’S ABOUT HOW MUCH MONEY THAT YOU HAVE TO REFUND. UH, AROUND 100,000. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, I’M NOT I’M NOT THIS HORRIBLE PERSON. I’M NOT A RACIST. I’M NOT, UM, ANY OF THAT, UNFORTUNATELY, WE WE GO DOWN IN HISTORY IN THE BEGINNING, DURING. AND IN THE END, NO KREWE HAS EVER HAD THEIR PERMIT PULLED IN THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS. EVER. IT’S UNHEARD OF. SO WAS IT CANCEL CULTURE? YES, I DO BELIEVE THAT IT WAS CANCELED CULTURE AT ITS FINEST. HOW DO YOU TAKE ANY OWNERSHIP ON THIS? AND, YOU KNOW, LIKE I SAID, I WOULDN’T DO ANYTHING TO HURT FOLKS, BUT WHERE’S THE FORGIVENESS? WHERE IS THE. LET’S LEARN FROM THIS AND MOVE FORWARD. AND RATHER THAN ELIMINATING US, I WAS HONORED AND I ALWAYS WILL BE, UM, TO HAVE BEEN A PART OF NEW ORLEANS MARDI GRAS HISTORY BECAUSE I LOVE IT. AND OUR PLAYGROUND, I HOPE, UM, YOU KNOW, IS PART OF MY LEGACY THAT WILL GO ON IN THE CITY FOREVER. BUT I’M SAD THAT IT’S OVER. I’M SAD THAT THE NEW ORLEANS CHAPTER OF PHOENIX IS OVER, BUT I WAS HONORED TO BE AMONGST THEM. I WISH I WOULD HAVE SLOWED DOWN TO ENJOY THOSE MOMENTS MORE. I WISH THAT THINGS COULD HAVE TURNED OUT DIFFERENTLY, AND THAT I WOULD HAVE BEEN GIVEN THE CHANCE FOR FORGIVENESS. MY HEART WAS IN THE RIGHT PLACE. MY JUST MY MESSAGE WAS JUST WRONG. AND IF I’D HAVE KNOWN THAT, I WOULD TAKE IT BACK. AND WHILE LEE CLAIMS SHE SENT SIGNED BANNED CONTRACTS AND ASKED ABOUT IN-PERSON MEETINGS BEFORE NIX’S PERMIT WAS REVOKED, A SPOKESPERSON FROM CITY COUNCIL VICE PRESIDENT JP MORRELL RESPONDED TO THOSE CLAIMS WITH THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT, SAYING, QUOTE, OUR OFFICE NOTIFIED NIX OF POSSIBLE VIOLATIONS WEEKS IN ADVANCE OF THE CARNIVAL LEGISLATIVE ADVISORY COMMITTEE, OR CLAC MEETING, AND WE INVITED THEM TO ATTEND TO PROVIDE EVIDENCE AND OR CONTEXT TO OUR FINDINGS. THOUGH A MEMBER OF NICK’S LEADERSHIP WAS PRESENT AT THE APRIL MEETING, NICK’S DECLINED TO PARTICIPATE. THE ONLY COMMUNICATION OUR OFFICE HAS RECEIVED FROM NICK’S LEADERSHIP TO DATE IS THE EMAIL SENT BY MISS LEE, NEAR LEE, A WEEK AFTER THE CLAC. FURTHER, NICK’S LEADERSHIP DECLINED TO ATTEND THE COUNCIL MEETING WHEN T