New Orleans’ Leah Chase aka the ‘Queen of Creole Cuisine’ dead at 96

The legendary queen of New Orleans Creole cuisine has died.

Leah Chase, who introduced her beloved Creole dishes to tourists from around the world, became a Civil Rights icon for refusing to abide by segregation laws, allowing Black and white patrons to dine together inside of her restaurant, Dooky Chase named after her late husband, according to NBC News.

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While in New Orleans, civil rights leaders such as Thurgood Marshall, Martin Luther King Jr., and Ernest “Dutch” Morial, the city’s first Black mayor, would dine at Dooky Chase’s and plan strategic voter registration drives or other impactful ways to challenge segregation laws and bring about change. Chase, 96, was also known to sneak food to some of these same leaders while they were unjustly jailed.

In a statement, Chase’s family said their matriarch, an “unwavering advocate for civil liberties” and firm “believer in the Spirit of New Orleans” died surrounded by her close-knit family.

Source: New Orleans’ Leah Chase aka the ‘Queen of Creole Cuisine’ dead at 96