Anuncio

The Battle of Puebla took place on May 5, 1862. The Mexican army faced the French, much larger in number and in power of arms. General Ignacio Zaragoza led the Mexicans, who won the battle against all odds.

Zaragoza died only four months after that great victory on September 8, 1862, a victim of murine typhus, a disease transmitted by rat fleas.

On May 5, 1867, five years after the Battle of Puebla, a group of Mexicans celebrated that victory in Texas, which was the birthplace of Zaragoza in 1829, 16 years before Texas was annexed as part of the United States.

Also read: Why Puebla is Puebla?

From then on, the popular celebration became a symbol for Mexicans who experienced oppression from invaders or foreign governments, and gained roots among those who lived in the states that belonged to Mexico.

Other Latinos began to celebrate Cinco de Mayo and it became very popular. In 1930, the Mexican consulate in Los Angeles held a celebration of this date, which gave it an official character, which brought together the Mexicans who already lived there and the new migrants who were arriving in the United States.

Since then, Cinco de Mayo has become a cultural holiday that celebrates both Mexicans and Latinos in the United States, making it even more important than Independence Day.


publicidad puebla
 
Anuncio

Zaragoza, the border chinaco

Ignacio Zaragoza was short and wore glasses, but he was a natural leader and was baptized as the border chinaco. At that time, the term was applied to the oppressed rebels who fought against power, the church and “los catrines”.

They were considered brave and it was the name given to the soldiers who fought against the French invasion.

The Chicano movement in the United States adopted Cinco de Mayo as one of its symbols against oppression, and it became a banner of struggle for Mexicans, Latinos, and migrants who suffered for the simple fact of being minorities.

Translate done by: Luba Michelle García Vega

 


POB/LFJ

Anuncio