Everyone
knows that the 5th of May is celebrated by those of
Mexican descent, and nobody should have a problem with that. To
celebrate one's heritage is to honor where you came from and the
sacrifices your ancestors made to get you to where you are. I am a
very proud Irishman myself, even with all the negative stereotypes
involved with that. To understand where this post is going, you need
a little background into the history of the Cinco de Mayo holiday,
especially in America.
Spanish
for “fifth of May,” Cinco de Mayo is a celebration held in the
United States and Mexico, most notably in the Mexican state of
Puebla, obviously on the 5th of May. Originating in the
American West in communities of Mexican descent to commemorate the
cause of freedom and democracy, today the date is a celebration of
Mexican heritage and pride. In Puebla, the day commemorates the
Mexican Army's unlikely victory over vastly superior French forces on
5 MAY 1862.
Cinco
de Mayo has its roots in the French occupation of Mexico, which took
place in the aftermath of the Mexican-American War of 1846-48, the
Mexican Civil War of 1858, and the 1860 Reform Wars. These wars left
the Mexican Treasury nearly bankrupt. In July of 1862, Mexican
President Benito Juarez declared a two-year moratorium on all foreign
debt payments, prompting Great Britain, France, and Spain to send
fleets to Veracruz. The Spanish and English negotiated with the
Mexican government and sent their fleets home.
The
French, ruled by Napolean III at the time, were unmollified. Late in
1861, seeking to establish a Latin empire favorable to French
interests, an 8,000 strong French force stormed ashore at Veracruz,
encountering little meaningful resistance and sending the Mexican
government into retreat. Moving towards Mexico City from Veracruz,
the French suffered a decisive, though relatively short-lived, defeat
at the hands of an ill-equipped and much smaller Mexican Army of
4,500 men at the forts of Loreto and Guadalupe, near Puebla.
The
American Cinco de Mayo celebration originated in communities of
Mexican descent in the American West, Southwest, and Northwest in the
1860s. Mexicans and Latinos living in California during the American
Civil War are credited with being the first to celebrate Cinco de
Mayo in the United States. It grew in popularity and evolved into a
celebration of Mexican culture and heritage, first in areas with
large Mexican-American populations, like Los Angeles, Chicago, and
Houston. Eventually it expanded across the United States. On June 7,
2005, the U.S. Congress issued a Concurrent Resolution calling on the
President of the United States to issue a proclamation calling upon
the people of the United States to observe Cinco de Mayo with
appropriate ceremonies and activities.
In
the United States Cinco de Mayo has taken on a significance beyond
that in Mexico. To celebrate, many display Cinco de Mayo banners
while school districts hold special events to educate pupils about
its historical significance. Special events and celebrations
highlight Mexican culture, especially in its music and regional
dancing. Examples include baile folklórico
and mariachi
demonstrations held annually at the Plaza del Pueblo de Los Angeles,
near Olvera Street. Commercial interests in the United States have
capitalized on the celebration, advertising Mexican products and
services, with an emphasis on beverages, foods, and music.
"Public
memory of the Cinco de Mayo was socially, and deliberately,
constructed during the American Civil War by Latinos responding to
events and changes around them," says historian David E.
Hayes-Bautista. "The Cinco de Mayo is not, in its origins, a
Mexican holiday at all but rather an American one, created by Latinos
in California in the middle of the 19th century. (David E.
Hayes-Bautista, "El Cinco de Mayo: An American Tradition (2011)
p 5)
I
think it's time for me to reiterate that there is nothing
wrong with celebrating your heritage. I've detailed in other posts
how I believe it is
wrong to place your heritage before your American citizenry, and how
multiculturalism is destroying this nation, formerly known as “the
great melting-pot” of the world. The American culture, into which
all immigrants are supposed
to assimilate, is being subsumed by those who refuse to do just that
– assimilate.
That
being said, can someone explain how and why it became a bad
thing to celebrate being an American
here in AMERICA?!
Late in February of this year, a federal
court ruled that a high school in California is not
violating the civil rights of patriotic students by banning them from
wearing American Flag t-shirts on Cinco de Mayo. The school's
reasoning for the ban – fears of “racial violence,” saying they
might enflame Latino students celebrating today.
I
understand that the school has a history of gang fights and racial
tension, but are the administrators there really
stupid enough to believe that it's all one way? Let's not mention
that there isn't even an American “race.” Why, then, is it
considered okay for Latinos to celebrate their heritage, and what is
essentially an American “holiday,” but not for others to
celebrate their own heritage? Did no one consider that celebrating
Cinco de Mayo might just “enflame” racial tensions the other way?
My
family has a saying: “If you do for one, you do for all.” It's
something I've tried to follow, with varying success, for my entire
life. If you apply that logic to the American Flag t-shirt ban, what
the school should
have done is ban all ethnic celebrations today, or any
day for that matter. It's not something in which I'm truly in favor,
but there's no excuse for banning one display of patriotism, while
permitting another display.
It's
beyond disgusting that a school, and a federal court, IN
AMERICA,
think that it's somehow appropriate to essentially stifle American
citizens' Right to Free Speech for fear of offending others. It's
beyond offensive that a display of patriotism for the nation
in which we live
is somehow considered inflammatory in the country
in which we live.
Patriotism
is not,
nor should it ever
be considered,
a BAD
THING,
nor should it be discouraged. Indeed, it should be readily and
heartily encouraged.
Patriotism got us through the Revolution, World War 2, and September
11th, just to name a few. Patriotism is still a primary motivator
for those who join our all-volunteer armed forces. I don't think
anyone can truly
say that those are bad things for America. ~ Hunter
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