Santa Ana : Independence Day Celebrations Planned

Santa Ana residents will celebrate the independence of Mexico and other Central American countries Sunday with the county’s first Fiesta de Independencia Parade.

Mexico celebrates its independence from Spain on Saturday, but the parade was scheduled for Sunday because of traffic reasons, said Roger Kooi, the city’s downtown development manager. Kooi said the celebration also honors Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Puerto Rico.

“There isn’t anything like this in Orange County,” said City Councilman Miguel A. Pulido, adding that the nearest area with an official parade is East Los Angeles, which will conduct its event today.

The parade is part of a weekend street fair sponsored by Santa Ana merchants that has been held for the past four years, Kooi said.

The parade is scheduled to include floats, bands and clowns. A main feature will be a group of a dozen stunt motorcyclists, most of whom come from Mexico City.

Raul Velasco, a talk-show host from Mexico City featured on the Spanish International Network, will be the parade’s grand marshal, Pulido said.

Pulido said organizers hope the parade will remove some misconceptions about independence day celebrations in Latin American countries.

“There’s misinformation as to what that means,” he said. “A lot of folks think that Cinco de Mayo (May 5) is independence day.” That holiday celebrates the Mexican military victory at Puebla over a French expeditionary force in 1862.

The parade will begin at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Participants will begin lining up at noon.

The parade will start at 15th and Main streets and travel south to 3rd Street.

The festival will run from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. today and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. It will take place on 4th Street between Broadway and French Avenue. The festival will include concession stands, music and clowns. A special ceremony, called El Grito (cry of independence), featuring local civic leaders, will be held at 6:30 p.m. today.