To the Editor:
As I opened the Weekend Update(TM) this past week, the fears that I was experiencing as the weekend approached were realized. There were several events that were being passed off as "Cinco de Mayo" celebrations. While I enjoy a "fiesta" as much as the next person, my biggest problem was that these celebrations fomented stereotypes of Mexicans and MexicanAmericans and in general, trivialized an important Chicano holiday.
I did not attend any of the events in question because I did not want to see Mexican culture reduced to tequila, sombreros and maybe a pinata thrown in for fun. One fraternity encouraged "Mexican attire" while an undergraduate society enticed people to attend by offering nachos, a food which is in fact an American creation. Even one of my favorite a cappella groups on campus was not exempt from this cultural stereotyping. At the Spring Sing there was a skit where the lyrics "I drink tequila, I eat enchiladas" were sung to the song "La Bamba," a song originally sung by Mexican-American singer Ritchie Valens. These are only a few examples of the stereotypes and misrepresentations of Mexicans that were presented over the weekend at Dartmouth.
There were a few attempts by the aforementioned groups at attaching a significance to the holiday by making reference to the original battle on May 5, 1862 where the French were driven out of Puebla by Mexican forces. This statement, however, is incomplete.
Cinco de Mayo is commonly misunderstood by many as a day that celebrates Mexican independence from Spain or sometimes from France. In actuality, it is not even celebrated in Mexico. Cinco de Mayo is significant for Chicanos in the United States as a holiday of their defining struggle in this country. The Chicano movement has worked for many years in attempts to eradicate the often racist tendencies of Anglo-American society in the fields of education, economics, and politics. There was no mention of the Chicano movement, or of the symbolic significance of Cinco de Mayo to the struggle of Chicanos in the United States.
For me, this was a gross oversight. The only groups that illustrated the importance of the Chicano movement were Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA) and through their Cinco de Mayo Fiesta that featured a Mariachi band and the play "Los Vendidos" by Luis Valdez presented by Nuestras Voces, the Latino theater group.
While I realize that it is difficult for a fraternity, sorority, undergraduate society or other similar groups to put such a holiday in context, and many of the stereotypes that were abound were meant to be light-hearted, I think that we as a campus need to be more aware of the cultures of others, and not use an important Mexican American holiday like Cinco de Mayo as an excuse to throw a party that stereotypes a culture and ignores an entire political movement such as the Movimiento Chicano.
