With the Fourth of July right around the corner I decided it was time to sit down and delve into a bit of the history of Cinco de Mayo.
What, you might be thinking, does that have to do with America's Independence Day?
Not much of anything actually, but I'm not going to waste time explaining my kind of convoluted thought process. Just know that the thought of one holiday led me to another and here we are.
For starters, let's establish the fact that Cinco de Mayo is NOT Mexico's Independence Day - which actually falls on September 16th - nor is it Dia de los Muertos where loved ones are remembered and is celebrated on November first. So please, if you don't know anything else about Cinco de Mayo, now you know that you absolutely should not go around calling it Mexican Independence Day or the Day of the Dead.
Now, I am going to go a step further and inform you that Cinco de Mayo is actually more widely celebrated in the United States than it is in Mexico. But it's a Mexican holiday! You're probably protesting, but I can assure you that the day has much more hype here in the USA. To give some historical context, around 1861 France attempted an invasion of Mexico under the rule of Napoleon III. With a force outnumbered by around 4,000 men, and using inferior weapons, the Mexican troops made a stand in a small town called Puebla on May 5th, 1862. Against the odds, the Mexican troops won. And so the holiday is celebrated in Puebla, but not nation-wide. Now, this wasn't a major win for the Mexicans, nor did it end the French invasion, but the victory was heartening and symbolic. Especially for Latinas in the United States.
In California at the time the Latinx community was very diverse, the different groups holding political, social, and economic power under local assemblies. While the French invasion was going on, guess what was happening in the United States? The Civil War! Latinxs saw similarities in the threat of the French and secession of the South. The victory at Puebla inspired a sense of unity and strength in the Latinxs as they watched two separate wars occurring at once. When the Puebla victory occurred, Latinx newspapers in the USA were eager and ecstatic to share the news. The assemblies rallied their power together to support Mexico and commemorate the holiday. It was a day of unity and empowerment for Latinxs in the United States. Thus, Cinco de Mayo stands as a holiday for unity, community, and empowerment here in the USA.
Cinco de Mayo is celebrated now across the states and has, admittedly, taken on a commercialized flair. But this does not mean the holiday simply stands as an excuse for people to party. There is a strong meaning historically and symbolically for the holiday that we should all keep in mind. So please be respectful and aware next time May Fifth comes around, and for the love of everything don't go around shouting that you're celebrating Mexican Independence Day.
