Live Folklorico and Polynesian dance performances graced the night as Southwestern College celebrated Día de los Muertos at the beginning of November. Mole, rice and coffee were good company for the cold night. 

TRADITIONAL FOLKLORICO — Andrea Benitez shows off her heritage with a flolklorico dance in traditional apparel.

“Día de los Muertos is a huge tradition that we wanted to share from a student perspective, a unique perspective not just held by Mexicans but also other traditions like the Polynesian community,” said Dr. Guadalupe Corona, SWC’s director of equity, diversity & inclusion during the Nov. 1 event held in front of the Student Union Cafeteria by the Associated Student Union (ASO).

“We live so close to the border, [it] is a beautiful tradition everyone should know about.”

Corona introduced the event with a short summary of the history of Día de los Muertos tradition and the significance of altars. Día de los Muertos is a holiday rooted in Hispanic culture that happens Oct. 31 – Nov. 2 with the intention of remembering loved ones who passed away. It is a time for prayers, flowers and colorful decorations for the deceased. 

SPLASH OF POLYNESIAN FLAIR— A performer shares Polynesian culture by dancing at SWC’s main campus on Día de los Muertos.

Mariela Salinas, 25-year-old social vice president of ASO, shared her inspiration of organizing the event and meeting with the program Improving Dreams, Equity, Access and Success (IDEAS) and Equity, Diversity & Inclusion. 

“I was at the Puente program last year and one of the activities we had to do was going to cultural events,” Salinas said. “We went to Chicano Park and I saw they had the Aztec dances, altars, and I said that I wanted to do something like this in school too.”

Gabriela Gonzalez, who is the ASO vice president of president of club affairs, also expressed her sentiments of her collaboration for the event.

“A year ago I moved from Veracruz, Mexico and I also thought it was a good idea to portray our culture and traditions,” said the 19-year-old Gonzalez.

Salinas said she wanted to host this event to encourage students to remember their heritage.

“We live in another country, but that does not mean we are not proud of our roots,” Salinas said. “I thought it would be a good idea to portray our culture for people to see.”