History Talk! "Crime in Colonial New Orleans"

Local historian David Michael Schneider will discuss “Crime in Colonial New Orleans: Terror on the Frontier.” at 7 p.m., Tuesday, March 31, at the East Bank RegionalLibrary, 4747 W. Napoleon, Metairie. 

This event is free of charge and open to the public. There is no registration.

According to Schneider, the French colonial empire was a brutal money-making machine. “French society, which was carefully organized by the Church and the Crown, broke down in the environment of the Gulf Coast, from New Orleans to Biloxi,” says Schneider. “The Catholic church lost control of social morals. The colonial regime was unable, or altogether disinterested, to provide for the basic needs of colonists. In this environment, things were very tense, and very wild, but the stories are fascinating, invigorating tales of life on the edge of empire.”

David Michael Schneider received his bachelor’s degree in philosophy and religious studies from Louisiana State University with a minor in political science. He practices historic forms of European swordplay with the Crescent City Historical Fencing Club. He teaches at a local high school.