NEW ORLEANS– In 1997, filmmaker Amy Nesbitt put together a documentary of one of the founder of The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Allison Miner.

This weekend, Miner is being honored again as part of a celebration of women’s contributions to our city.

In addition to her work with Jazz Fest, Miner also went on to manage the careers of many of our music stars including Professor Longhair and the ReBirth Brass Band.

This Friday and Saturday is a special event at the George and Joyce Wein Jazz and Heritage Center.  Miner was a staunch supporter of the people who made music in this town, and for them she was a hero.

Anthropologist Helen Regis has researched the festival for over a dozen years and she told us, “She(Miner) had very strong moral barometer, and she stood up for what she thought was right. One of her main interest was advocating for the musician, that people be treated well as human beings as well as artists.”

This weekend’s program is part of a series of events highlighting the work of women in our city.

Rachel Lyons, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Archivist says “NOLA for women is a consortium group of people in different cultural organizations and going into the tricentennial for New Orleans we’re doing a whole series of events from the museum at the Archdiocese to the Historic New Orleans collection and with us. We’re featuring women’s contributions to to the City of New Orleans under a program that’s called women as builders and rebuilders.”

Friday is a screening of the documentary “Reverence”, that tells the story of Miner, followed by discussions and panels on Friday and Saturday.

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