by Marvin J. Ramirez
photo by Marvin J. Ramirez
I believe that what started to be a Mexican celebration and a pride day for Mexican-North Americans (Chicanos), is no longer a monolithic party, but a multinational Latino feast.
Can’t expect anymore to find tacos and burritos (little donkeys) as the only appetizers offered around; but, instead, food from many Latino countries, as well from Asian to African countries.
And although Cinco de Mayo has its roots in the French occupation of Mexico, which took shape in the aftermath of the Mexican-American War of 1846-48, this event in the U.S. became the symbol of a battle for identity for Chicanos.
Now it has become part of the cultural landscape for Latinos, just as the Irish’s St. Patrick’s Day has become a part of the cultural tradition to most North Americans. In the historical context, Cinco de Mayo makes Latinos feel like a great big family, with a cultural, social, philosophical and political affinity toward each other.
Cinco de Mayo also represents the determination of Latin Americans, who for centuries has been abused and plundered from their cultural and natural resources by imperialist superpowers.
Cinco de Mayo marks the victory of the Mexican Army against the well-armed French Army at the Battle of Puebla, in which 5,000 ill-equipped Mestizo and Zapotec Indians defeated the French Army in Puebla México, winning the “Batalla de Puebla,” on the fifth of May 1862.
Although the event is celebrated on a much smaller scale in México, here in the United States in the U.S. is very signifi cant party, involving from small vendors trying to capitalize on a few extra bucks, to larger businesses and corporations catering to the fastest growing Hispanic market.
We at El Reportero send a warm salute to the largest and most infl uential community, the Mexican people.
¡Viva Cinco de Mayo!
