Community Cinco de Mayo festival to honor heritage, culture

Pennylynn Webb, Palestine Herald-Press, Texas
·2 min read

Apr. 27—A free community Cinco de Mayo festival will be held Saturday, May 4.

"Cinco de Mayo, which translates to May 5, is a celebration commemorating victory at the battle of Puebla, which was won by Mexico in a battle against the French army in 1862," said Luis Giron, event organizer.

Giron said Cinco de Mayo symbolizes the defense of freedoms, represents a victory for the underdog, and is a great way to showcase Mexican and Hispanic cultural arts, heritage and food.

The Cinco de Mayo celebration will be held at Reagan Park.

Giron, of Palestine, is organizing the event for the second time after coordinating similar events for the Palestine Independent School District for several years. Giron is a Spanish teacher at Palestine Jr. High.

"We would like to welcome the entire Palestine community to celebrate Cinco de Mayo with us," Giron said. "This is a free event for the whole family, so come enjoy the music, dancing, live performances and food."

The Leadership Education Achieve Dreams (LEAD) Team has partnered up with Giron and his volunteers to help sponsor some of the activities.

"We want to embrace all the cultures of Palestine, as many as we can find," said Mayor Mitchell Jordan, the founder of LEAD. "We all have to live together and need to do all that we can to know each other and understand each other's cultures. This is a very diverse group that is coming together to celebrate and honor Mexican heritage and culture through this event."

This year's entertainment for the festivities kicks off with a welcome from the mayor, followed by a history presentation of Cinco De Mayo by Giron and other local educators.

Performers include Raices, a ballet folklórico group of Tyler; Libertad Nortena; Audelio y Los Faraones; Mariachi Lara; Luis Giron as DJ Bom Bon along with performances by area schools, students and organizations.

Activities will include a pinata, El Grito (a Freedom Chant/Spirit Scream contest) and a community dance from 7-10 p.m.

There will be free face painting, balloon animals, a bounce house and other activities for children. There will also be a car show along with vendors and food trucks.