Cinco de Mayo

by Sophia Liu, 804

In Spanish, the phrase “Cinco de Mayo” means the fifth of May, so it should be no surprise that Cinco de Mayo falls annually on May 5th. This holiday is meant to recognize the Mexican victory of the Battle of Puebla. While this is a Mexican holiday, only part of the country truly celebrates it; Cinco de Mayo is primarily celebrated in the United States.

The origin of Cinco de Mayo dates all the way back to 1861 when a lawyer, Benito Juárez, was elected the president of Mexico; however, at the time, the country was going through financial difficulties after years of internal strife. The new president ended up failing to pay their debt payments to European governments. As a reaction to this, Britain, France and Spain sent naval forces to Veracruz, Mexico; they wanted their repayments. Thankfully, Mexico was able to negotiate with Britain and Spain, and they convinced the two countries to retreat. At the time, France was ruled by Napoleon III. He saw this as an opportunity to take over Mexico and form an empire there, so in late 1861, a very prepared French fleet invaded Veracruz. They sent a lot of troops; the French were able to drive President Juárez and the government into retreat.

The French got overly confident after this, so they were almost certain that victory would come quickly and easily. They sent 6,000 troops, led by General Charles Latrille de Lorencez, to attack a small town, Puebla de Los Ángeles, in east-central Mexico. From the new headquarters in the north, President Juárez sent out 2,000 Mexican men, led by General Ignacio Zargoza, to go to Puebla to help fortify the town. On May 5th, 1862, General Lorencez readied his men and led them in a heavy assault on Puebla. This battle lasted from dawn to dusk. The French retreated when they had lost about 500 soldiers; less than 100 Mexicans were killed during this dispute. Although this victory is quite petite, it is a symbolic victory for all of Mexico.

In Mexico, this holiday is sadly only celebrated in Puebla since the battle and victory took place there. Other parts of the country do take part in recognizing and celebrating, but unfortunately the majority of Mexico does not commemorate this holiday. For most Mexicans, Cinco de Mayo is simply an ordinary day. All stores and banks remain open on May 5th since it is not a federal holiday.

In the United States, Cinco de Mayo is a way to celebrate and recognize

Mexican culture and heritage. Most celebrations in Mexican-Americans communities. In the 1960s, Chicago activists raised awareness for this holiday. Nowadays, Cinco de Mayo is observed through parties, parades, traditional foods, dancing and music. Some of the largest and best celebrations take place in Los Angeles, Houston and Chicago.

Cinco de Mayo is definitely a smaller holiday, and most of us probably don’t celebrate it. Personally, I don’t celebrate it, but I think it’s still important that we recognize Cinco de Mayo and Mexican culture. As the world becomes more diverse, learning about different cultures and religions is one of the most important things we can do.

Cinco de Mayo | History, Celebrations, & Facts | Britannica Cinco de Mayo 2022: Facts, Meaning & Celebrations - HISTORY

Ramadan 2022

by Yazan Al Samarrie (801) & Abdul ElTabei (803) What is Ramadan?

Ramadan is not actually a holiday. It is one of the months of the Islamic lunar calendar. Every year, it moves 11 days earlier, which is why you might have realized that it moves back every year.

Did you know everyone celebrates Ramadan differently?

Yazan: For Ramadan, I celebrate time with my family and close family friends. Abdul: For Ramadan, I celebrate the time with my family.

Ramadan is a time of worship and getting closer to Allah.

Rules of Ramadan:  Refrain from eating and drinking  No bad language  No harm to others  No lying  Donate to the poor  These apply from sunrise to sunset