Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club - Zulu Coconut

Zulu Coconut

Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club is well known to parade goers for throwing coconuts, called the 'Golden Nugget', to the crowd. In the early 1900s, other parading organizations threw fancy glass necklaces that were handmade and expensive. The working men of Zulu could not afford expensive treats, but still wanted to give a special prize to lucky parade goers. The men decided to purchase coconuts from the French Market because they were unique and inexpensive. Painted and adorned coconuts became popular with the club starting in the late 1940s. In 1987, the organization was unable to renew its insurance coverage. Mounting lawsuits stemming from coconut related injuries, forced a halt to the longstanding tradition of throwing coconuts. In 1988, Governor Edwin W. Edwards signed Louisiana State Bill #SB188, the “Coconut Bill”, into law removing liability from injuries resulting from a coconut - enabling the tradition to resume.

Read more about this topic:  Zulu Social Aid & Pleasure Club