Dia de los Muertos Events Honor Loved Ones, Pilsen Style
Heriberto Quiroz & Jaime Guzman
Published: November 4, 2009
This weekend was filled with many Dia de los Muertos events in Pilsen. The Pilsen Portal witnessed some of the festivities, and we were delighted to see the amount of people visiting the community.
On Friday we visited the Benito Juarez High School Dia de Los Muertos celebration. Alters in remembrance of those that have passed away were displayed. Student at the school made the few dozen items on display and got to take them home afterwards. Most of the alters included little skulls made out of clay, hand painted. There were also pictures of loved ones, and other miscellaneous artifacts.
Afterwards, there was a reception in which the students enjoyed pizza, tamales and enchiladas. After the Dia de los Muertos celebration, freshman students took part in the annual Halloween party. Costumes were the admission ticket and students enjoyed an evening of dancing and costume competition.
Party and Remembrance
On Saturday we visited the event at Casa Michoacan, hosted by Rockotitlan. Los Cojolitos de Jaltipan, Veracruz, a four-member band, was in Chicago from southern Mexico, and they had people dancing to the sounds of Jarocho style music, a traditional form that is heavily influenced by the African presence in Veracruz and other southern parts of Mexico. There were more than 100 people in attendance, with the venue barely capable of holding them all. It was a very diverse crowd, with young and old enjoying the free wine and authentic Jarocho.
Also that night, a documentary by Oscar Gonzalez Iñiguez on the history of Dia de los Muertos was shown, and Benjamin Anaya y los Estraños Unidos (Pisen based local band) headlined. They are a funk samba fusion group, comprised of local musicians and includes Pilsen’s very own, Jaime Garza.
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