Mexico’s Independence Celebrated With Parade

Thousands of cheering spectators lined C Street on Sunday to watch a military color guard, mariachi bands and folkloric dancers march as part of the Fiestas Patrias 2000 parade to celebrate Mexican Independence Day.

A sea of red, white and green Mexican flags flashed in the sun, dancers twirled their colorful skirts, and cheers of “Viva Mexico!” rang through the air.

The event mixed a celebration of Mexican history with Oxnard’s cultural heritage, as entries from the Mexican Consulate to the Oldies Car Clubs and students from Oxnard’s Sierra Linda Elementary School performed traditional Mexican dances.

“It brings you a lot of energy. It reminds you of home,” said Angel Velazquez, 47, an Oxnard resident originally from Tenamaxtlan in the Mexican state of Jalisco.

Independence Day festivities in Mexico tend to be much larger than Oxnard’s homespun-style event, he said, but whatever the size, he considers it important for children to come and learn their heritage.

“They have to grow their roots,” Velazquez said. “Even if they’re American and are born here. We tell about this to our sons so they can feel the same thing we feel.”

The festivities commemorate Sept. 16, 1810, when Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a priest, set off Mexico’s war of independence with a speech still recited annually by Mexico’s president.

The Spanish executed Hidalgo in 1811, but the revolution could not be stopped, and a decade later, Spain finally left Mexico.

On Sunday, many spectators said their favorite entries were one of the parade’s numerous ballet folkloric dance troupes and the “Charros,” Mexican cowboys on horseback, who performed rope tricks and waved to the crowd.

“I like the dancers’ dresses,” said Atzimba Pahua, 5, who came with her brother, Tzurumu Pahua, 2, and her mother, Mirella Zendejas, all of Oxnard.

It was a day of traditions, whether dances, costumes or music, and spectators sang along as bands strolled by playing well-known Mexican songs.

One ad-lib crowd-pleaser was 2-year-old spectator Aaron Pimentel, who marched onto the parade route as the Mariachi Regional Juvenil band stopped and performed in front of the judges’ stand.

Aaron stood beside trumpeter Leonardo Villegas of Oxnard, tapped his foot and honked his toy trumpet in time to the music as the crowd screamed for more. “Only in Oxnard do we stop a parade for an encore,” said announcer Joe Mendoza.

Spectators also cheered for two classic car clubs as they zigzagged down the parade route, blaring sirens, salsa and mariachi music, with passengers waving Mexican flags out windows.

Rudy Garcia, 70, a former paratrooper who fought in the Korean War, was one of five veterans who led off the parade as flag bearers. After traveling the parade route, he watched the rest of the parade from near the judges’ stand.

The parade’s short route was easier than marching in the Ventura County Fair Parade, he said, and the crowd was much livelier.