Virgen de Guadalupe procession replaces car floats with hand-carried shrines
The iconic car floats that cruised down East Cesar E. Chavez Avenue for decades as part of the Virgen de Guadalupe procession in East Los Angeles were replaced by wooden platform shrines hand-carried by volunteers as Catholics gathered Sunday for the 91st annual devotion.
Volunteers from half of the 30 parishes throughout the Los Angeles Archdiocese who took part hoisted wooden platforms called andas on their shoulders and carried flowers, statues, paintings and murals of saints and the Virgen down the 0.7-mile parade route. About a dozen other churches entered bands, mariachis or Indigenous dancers in the oldest continuous religious parade in Los Angeles, which was founded in 1931 by Mexican war refugees to honor the Virgen de Guadalupe, Mexico’s patron saint.
The cost-cutting shift, instigated by rising costs of city parade permits, was welcomed by some who saw the floats as a distraction from devotion of Mary and dismissed by those who loved the pageantry.
“People expect to see these beautiful floats filled with flowers and tributes to the Virgin,” said Carlos Betancourt, 49, an organizer from St. Marcellinus in Commerce. “This is what we’ve been doing for ... years through similarly tough times.”
A self-described former “drug addict, alcoholic and womanizer” who found his way to religious retreats and sobriety through prayers to Jesus’ mother in the summer of 2013, Betancourt said celebrations for “la jefa” should not be “economized.”
The andas are traditional during the devotion in some Mexican villages, but car floats in the East Los Angeles parade date back at least to the 1950s, according to archival photos. Father Julio Ramos, the event’s chief organizer, said the cost of permits for the vehicle floats required by the cities of Los Angeles and Monterey Park had risen “very sharply.”
The andas were also much more affordable for parishioners who, despite struggling with inflation and COVID-19, were spending thousands of dollars on floats, he added. Volunteer groups raised funds for the parade permits.
Some of the car floats were little more than trucks adorned with flowers and a statue of the Virgin Mary in the truck bed. Others were more elaborate and pictured scenes and even reenactments of the Catholic tradition of the appearances made by the Virgen de Guadalupe to an Indigenous peasant named Juan Diego in December 1531 on Tepeyac Hill in Mexico City.
Rosa Flores, a 31-year parade participant and organizer at St. Mary’s of Boyle Heights, said she was “surprised and saddened” by the shift to andas.
“We’ve had the floats for decades and this was a tough transition for us,” she said.
Flores, however, acknowledged that her church had saved a lot on the “much simpler” anda, which cost $300. Last year, the group spent $1,500 on a flower-covered car float.
Teresa Quezada, organizer for Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in East Los Angeles, said her parish group spent $12,000 on its car float last year.
The group this year cut the cost in half. Their anda included fresh red, white and pink roses surrounding a statue of the Virgen de Guadalupe with a backdrop of sunflowers and the number “100,” in reference to the church’s recent anniversary.
“I applaud the idea of the andas because these car floats were becoming a race between groups spending more and more each year,” she said. “I like getting back to focusing on honoring the Virgin Mary and not ourselves.”
On Friday morning, a group of eight parishioners from Holy Cross Church in South Los Angeles built a four-foot high, 15-pound anda draped with the Mexican flag.
The devotional display cost $150 and featured a three-foot statue of the Virgen de Guadalupe surrounded by colorful artificial roses and butterflies. Last year, Holy Cross parishioners chipped in $1,200 for their car float.
Holy Cross parishioner Juan Carlos Cruz Rojas, a drywall installer, said his church’s parade entry reminded him of the adoration of the Virgen de Guadalupe along the Costa Grande in the Mexican state of Guerrero.
“All the celebrations back home were very personal because the Virgin Mary was there in your presence,” Rojas, 37, said. “So, to play music for her and dance for her while you’re carrying her is like being home.”
Along the route, spectators smiled and waved, but also complained about the changes.
“This is nice too, but I’m used to seeing the car floats,” said Sofia Serrano, 17, who drove her grandmother from South Los Angeles to view the procession. “I’ve been coming here my whole life and this is different than what I’ve seen.”
Last year, Alfonso Somilleda cheered as his parish took first prize for best float. Epiphany of South El Monte created a 25-foot-long replica of the San Gabriel Mission complete with an adjacent Virgen de Guadalupe tribute. About 40 volunteers were needed for the project.
The church’s smaller wooden anda this year was built by eight volunteers.
“I believe this is more in line with the processions you see in Mexico,” Somilleda said. “So, it’s certainly more traditional than the car floats and more personal. But I think you can also say those were missed this year.”
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