Story by Kiersten Kimminau Design by Dani Flores-Gomez Every year, the Diversity & Equity Center (DEC) lights up campus with the celebration of Día de los Muertos, which translates to Day of the Dead. This year, the weeklong celebration will go from Oct. 26-31. With a variety of workshops, visual displays and activities that serve to educate and celebrate, students and community members alike will have much to gain from this weeklong celebration of life and death. For those who don’t know much about Día de los Muertos, it is an Indigenous cultural celebration that honors loved ones who have passed away. Though it originated in Mexico, it has been adopted by many Latin and European regions. However, it was not until 2014 that the celebration of Día de los Muertos was brought to the CWU campus. Elizabeth Vidaurri, program manager for the DEC, said, “Dia de los Muertos is about recognizing death as a natural part of the human experience.”
Visual Traditions During this celebration, families will create ofrendas (Spanish for offerings) to honor their departed family members who have passed away. On these ofrendas, families will place food, drinks, trinkets and offerings that are believed to encourage visits from the land of the dead. Another familiar symbol you may recognize is the colored and brightly adorned calacas and calaveras (skeletons and skulls). These often appear during the holiday in the form of sweet treats, masks and decorations to aid in the celebration and remembrance of life. One more visual tradition you may recognize is the sand tapestry. Artists will create stunning tapestries in front of ofrendas using colorful sand that display intricate scenes of skeletons, symbols, saints and more. The DEC goes big with this traditional piece every year, and 2020 will be no different.