Mexican Independence Day parade and festival
In honor of Mexican Independence Day, Sacred Heart Church
officials are holding the 23rd annual parade and Kermesse on
Sunday, Sept. 14.
Events begin at 11 a.m. at San Benito High School with a parade
down San Benito Street that ends at Sacred Heart Church, said Rudy
Ruiz, pastor for Sacred Heart/St. Benedict’s Catholic Church.
Mexican Independence Day parade and festival
In honor of Mexican Independence Day, Sacred Heart Church officials are holding the 23rd annual parade and Kermesse on Sunday, Sept. 14.
Events begin at 11 a.m. at San Benito High School with a parade down San Benito Street that ends at Sacred Heart Church, said Rudy Ruiz, pastor for Sacred Heart/St. Benedict’s Catholic Church.
Last year about 2,000 came and went during the day, Ruiz said.
“We expect a lot of people to show up,” said Ruben Rodriguez, who is responsible for the parade.
Attendees can expect floats created by local business owners, Mexican dancers in traditional costumes, the queen of the fiesta and the princesses, Rodriguez said.
“And a lot of show horses,” Ruiz said.
The contestants for queen sell tickets to raise money for the church, Ruiz said.
“The one that gets the most money is the queen,” Ruiz said. “She’s the queen of the Kermesse.”
The rest are princesses.
“They are going to be on different cars, each of them,” Ruiz said.
A Spanish mass will begin at Sacred Heart Church at 12:30 p.m. and end at 1:30 p.m.
“And then everybody is invited to take part in the parish Kermesse, with fun and food and entertainment for the whole family,” Ruiz said.
Held at the Sacred Heart School grounds, kids can enjoy bingo, a bounce house, face painting, fishing and ring toss, Ruiz said.
Music lovers can dance to the sounds of La Banda Guanajuatence, La Banda Peligro, La Banda Zyrys and Los Compas De Mexico, said Rafael Regalado, station manager at KMPG-AM, a local Spanish language radio station whose staff coordinated the bands.
The menu will include barbecued chicken, hamburgers, hot dogs, French fries and more traditional Mexican fare such as burritos, carne asada, enchiladas and sopes.
“Everything will end with the raffle,” Ruiz said. “The main prize is $10,000.”
Festivities end at 6:30 p.m.
“It really promotes Hispanic heritage, pride in our community, because it’s such a large ethnic group in our community,” Ruiz said. “We are proud to be Americans, but at the same time we are proud of our heritage as well.”
The child of migrant workers, Ruiz is a first-generation American.
“It makes me feel good to be an American of Mexican descent,” Ruiz said. “We want to share these traditions with the community at large. A lot of Anglo-Americans go to Mexico to experience the rich traditions. Why go to Mexico when you can come here?”
Religion is very much a part of Mexican culture, Ruiz said.
“You can’t just separate the religion from the culture,” Ruiz said.
The day is about celebrating the Hispanic spirit, Ruiz said.
“That same spirit of independence is very much a part of every culture,” he said.
The roots of Mexican independence
Celebrated on Sept. 16, Mexican Independence Day commemorates the events that led up to the country’s independence from colonial Spain.
El Grito de Dolores, or the cry of Dolores, is the battle cry that sparked the war.
In the early hours of Sept. 16, 1810, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a Catholic priest in the village of Dolores, rang the church bell that called the people to mass.
“Mexicanos, viva Mexico,” or, “Mexicans, long live Mexico,” he shouted, and urged the Indians and mestizos, or people of mixed European and indigenous ancestry, who made up the lowest classes of society to fight the Spaniards who had oppressed them for 300 years.
After 11 years of war, in 1821 the Spanish crown officially recognized Mexico as an independent country.
Hidalgo y Costilla was eventually executed in front of a firing squad, but is still remembered as the father of the revolution. Every year on Sept. 15, the Mexican president delivers El Grito.
Information compiled from Web sites www.inside-mexico.com, www.Mexonline.com and www.elgritomexicano.com.
