Cinco de Mayo

It seems like all I've done in April is talk about events that happen in May. Why break a trend? Cinco de Mayo is coming up in 10 days, so I thought I'd blog about it. What is this day? What happens? What's the history? How is the library celebrating? Answers to these questions and more to follow.

Cinco de Mayo means the fifth of May or May 5 in the Spanish language. It is a national holiday in Mexico that celebrates the Battle of Puebla fought in May 5 1862. Mexican forces defeated French invaders who attacked the forts of Loreto and Guadalupe. Traditionally, parades and other festivities are used to observe the holiday. It is celebrated in some parts of the Unites States, but it is not a national holiday here in the U.S.

Why do we celebrate it here? Because the United States uses any excuse to party! But seriously, many of our citizens have ancestors in Mexico or are from Mexico themselves and they like to uphold traditions.

If you'd like to know more information about this day you can use the library databases, check out some books from the library (I'll list a couple), or take a gander at the following websites.

Books:

Holidays, Festivals, and Celebrations of the World Dictionary
REF 394.26 HOL

Cinco de Mayo: Day of Mexican Pride
JUV 394.262 DOE

Website:

The History Channel Presents Cinco de Mayo
~ an exploration of the history of Mexico and Cinco de Mayo.

State-wide Menudo Cookoff
~ Learn how some celebrate and about the history

PGSCA Cinco de Mayo Festival
~ See how some celebrate

If you want to come and celebrate with the library, check out the cool teen event on the library's calendar.