Why did the New Orleans riot of 1866 take place?

It was during the reconstruction period in the south. Dark people were protesting and then the white people who at the time thought of themselves as higher fought back, and then the rioting and fighting started.

While the riot was typical of numerous racial conflicts during Reconstruction, this incident had special significance. It galvanized national opposition to the moderate Reconstruction policies of President Andrew Johnson and ushered in much more sweeping Congressional Reconstruction in 1867.