...........
Eat your vegetables.
Wash behind your ears.
And don’t you dare
forget Mother’s Day!
Mexico beats
Napoleon
Cinco de Mayo gives pride and a cause for celebration to
Chicanos living in the U.S*.
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C
by Irene K. Hislop
inco de Mayo celebrates a battle won main reason Mexican Americans celebrate Cinco
in 1862 in a struggle that continues de Mayo is, “What else do we have?”
today. In 1862, the Mexican govern­
Cinco de Mayo, according to some commu­
ment was in trouble. It was low on nity leaders, seems to be more important to Mexi­
funds, and funding the military wasn’t can Americans than to Mexicans. González grew
its top priority. President Benito Juarez was
up in try­ southern Texas, where he says, Cinco de
ing to improve the government, and faced Mayo
a great was just the day after May fourth. When he
deal of internal turmoil. Napoleon HI, who
ruled farther from the U.S./ Mexico border, he
moved
France at the time, decided to take advantage of was surprised to see how much the holiday meant
Mexico’s vulnerability.
to people.
Napoleon III sent an army of more than 6,000
“Cinco de Mayo isn’t a big deal in Mexico,”
men to Mexico with state-of-the-art weaponry. Sifuentez confirmed. “It’s really a Chicano holi­
No doubt they thought Mexico an easy target. day. Chicanos took Cinco de Mayo on as a cel­
Wrong. Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza met ebration of their background.”
the French with an army of2,000 men armed with
Fiesta Latina, the event Sifuentez organizes in
slingshots and sticks, and little heavy artillery. Eugene, doesn’t have a strictly Chicano/a empha­
They had a weapon the French hadn’t counted on sis.
— pride. Mexico won.
"We call it [Fiesta Latina] because we want to
While official invasions of Mexico are a thing be inclusive,” she said. “We feel it’s a celebration
of the past, Mexicans often face the same arro­ for all Latinos.”
gance from Anglos that Zaragoza did in the Battle
It’s also one of the few Cinco de Mayo cel­
of Puebla.
ebrations by Latino/as, according to González.
“The victory itself is not as important as its
"A lot of Cinco de Mayo celebrations are not
moral significance,” said Angie Sifuentez, orga­ put on by Latino/as,” he explained. “They are put
nizer of Eugene’s Fiesta Latina, a Cinco de Mayo on by Anglo capitalists to make a buck.”
celebration. “The French thought they could come
The Fiesta Latina will be on Saturday, May 8
in and take over because Mexico didn’t really at the covered basketball courts at First and Wash-
ington streets in Eugene. The event will feature a
have an army.”
“I think it relates to times right now because it main stage, where Caliente and Sandunga will
relates to a victory of minority groups,” explained perform, as well as a children’s stage. Puppets,
AnneSauvie, co-owner of LaTiendi ta, a Mexican piñatas, mimes, and Teatro Milagro will be on
grocery that doubles as a cultural hub for Eugene’s hand to entertain and educate. Storytellers will
Latino/a community. "It’s a sense of empower­ share Latino/a culture with tales told in both
ment. It shows the strength and determination of Spanish and English.
minorities.”
“It’s fun to have food and music,” commented
That sense of empowerment can be especially Sifuentez, “but it’s education as well.”
Food from different regions will hold some
important to Latinos living in the United States,
where they face the subtle and not-so-subtle ef­ surprises for those fiesta-goers expecting the more
fects of racism. The news in recent months has standard tacos and burritos. Local artists will also
contained a steady stream of examples of that display their works.
Fiesta Latina is just one stop on Teatro
racism, such as language barriers in the justice
. system, exploitation of farm workers, harassment Milagro’s busy schedule. They will also perform
from the Immigration and Naturalization Service, Earth Summit, a play about three children who go
bigoted opposition to ahousing project in Hillsboro to live in the Brazilian rainforest, in schools in
for farm workers, and police stopping a dispro­ Portland, Hillsboro, Salem, Wood bum and Canby.
One other point: Cinco de Mayo is not Mexi­
portionate number of Latino drivers.
‘There aren’t many occasions Mexican Ameri­ can Independence Day, as so many non-Mexi­
cans can identify with in the United States,” said cans think. Mexican Independence Day is Sep­
José González of Teatro Milagro/ Miracle The­ tember 16.
ater. "The roots of our culture are distant. The
Video examines
Israeli history
The Israeli Program Center of the Mittleman
Jewish Community Center has begun screening a
documentary on Israel’s political history. The
first two episodes were shown in late April, but
three more are planned for May.
Israel: A Nation is Born is narrated by Abba
Eban, Israel’s former foreign minister. The vid­
eos examine the political challenges Israel has
faced since the British Mandate. Oregon Public
Broadcasting has reportedly declined to show the
documentary, which has been praised by Jimmy
Carter and Henry Kissinger.
The final three episodes will be shown at 8 pm.
May 5, 12 and 19 at the Mittleman Jewish Com­
munity Center, 6651 SW Capitol Highway. Cost
is $2 per show. For more information, call 244-
0111
.
*
Beware the
Amazon Dragons
The Lesbian Community Project will be spon­
soring an entry in the Rose Festival dragon boat
races. The Amazon Dragons started team practice
in early April. The race is scheduled for June 12-
13. Teams are expected from as far away as
Taiwan, Canada and Great Britain. This will be
the second year Amazon Dragons have hit the
Willamette for this event. The Amazons practice
every Tues. and Fri. at 6:30 pm and Sunday at
10:00 am at the Willamette river. For more infor­
mation, call 223-0071.
Irene K. Hislop
710 NW 23rd Ave. • 248-9748
3638 SE Hawthorne • 236-7976
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