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Tributes Pour In for Victims of the New Orleans Attack
Those who died after a man drove a pickup through the French Quarter highlighted the diverse mix of people who are drawn to the city.
A memorial to the victims of the attack that killed at least 14 people in New Orleans. Credit… Edmund D. Fountain for The New York Times Published Jan. 3, 2025 Updated Jan. 5, 2025
To residents of New Orleans, grieving goes beyond somber goodbyes. It involves celebrating the life we all lead together by dancing and playing music, to help usher those who have passed into the next life.
At a vigil on a crowded Bourbon Street on Saturday evening, several hundred people gathered to do just that. Paying tribute to the victims of the New Year’s Day attack, they sobbed and hugged. They placed candles, paintings and five-foot-crosses at two growing memorials. They listened plaintively as a brass band played the hymn “A Closer Walk With Thee.” Then they danced when it played “I’ll Fly Away.”
The vigil continued the mourning process in the city for the 14 people killed and the dozens injured when a Texas man drove a pickup into the city’s French Quarter, where crowds of people had gathered along Bourbon Street to celebrate. Federal authorities were investigating the act as a terrorist attack.
One of the victims was Elliot Wilkinson, 40.
He had been released from prison and was homeless, but things seemed to be looking up. He had started searching for an apartment, according to a local homeless outreach group, Unity of Greater New Orleans. And he was back in one of his favorite places, according to his brother, Cecil Wilkinson.
“That’s where he wanted to go, when he got out, so that’s where he went,” the brother said on Friday. “He loved that city.”
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Elliot Wilkinson Credit… via Cecil Wilkinson Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.
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