Droves of children with face paint dressed up as characters like Miguel from Coco is what Day of the Dead looks like for many across the U.S., a Pixar retelling and commodification of an indigenous holiday that is centered around community, family and honoring one’s ancestors.
Most people from Southern California have had exposure to the holiday before the Pixar movie debuted with the large population of latinos being present, the tradition has persevered and evolved from its indigenous roots to the celebrations we see today.
Milo Alvarez, a history professor at LBCC, shared the history of the holiday. He said, “it was a time of growth, a time of coming together, you have a harvest going on, a gathering of ancestors and everything combined with the idea that we’re people of maíz, people of corn.”
In many of the Latin American cultures, a recurring theme is the importance of corn and peoples religious ties to the crop.
As time passed, colonization settled in, catholicization came and waves of immigration brought Latinos, reinforcing their culture here in the U.S. The celebration morphed from a year-long act of honoring one’s ancestors to a weekend festival of sugar skulls, altars, pan de muerto (a type of Mexican sweet bread for the holiday), face painting, as well as markets with food and music.
With the prominence of Coco and events like Hollywood Undead, a concert at a famous cemetery in Los Angeles, or Dia de los Muertos Halloween Time at Disneyland, it’s important to remember the local events that give back to the community and the people that they bring together.
A majority of these local events are fun but also focus on their community and promoting culture, education, and giving back.
All the following events are free to attend and are filled to the brim with vendors, food, drink and performances. Some just started more recently and others have been going on for 20-40 years.
Here at LAC on Nov. 1 the school will have a Dia de los Muertos family film showing from 4-6 p.m. and a procession from 6-8 p.m. across the campus. Also on Nov. 5 in downtown Long Beach on Pine street, the first Day of the Dead parade will be held and students can sign up to be in the parade and will receive a special event t-shirt.
Photo: Rene Trujillo Jr.
In downtown Long Beach the Museum of Latin American Art on Oct. 30 will have an all day event with performers, vendors, and guest speakers like Emmy award winner Jorge R. Gutierrez, a Mexican animator that helped create movies such as The Book of Life and shows like El Tigre, The Adventures of Manny Rivera.
Nearby, in Los Alamitos on Oct. 29 the St. Isidore Historical Plaza will be holding an event with vendors and an altar display competition. The altar display competition is a $35 buy in and the winners will be judged by a panel and the local community.
Tanya Barraza, the vice president of the board said, “Dias is one of our biggest events, it’s a labor of love and a grassroots effort but every dollar of profit from the event goes into paying off the mortgage for the plaza.” Which shows exactly why supporting and attending smaller local events in your community is so important.
Photo: Rene Trujillo Jr.
Moving up north, The Olvera Street Merchants Association has been throwing a multi day festival in DTLA for 35 years, with this year’s celebrations occurring from Oct 25 to Nov 2. One of the only events in the area that span over the course of nine days, their celebration starts and ends with a Mayan blessing and is lined with altars made by the community.
The usual itinerary for the days starts with a blessing then is followed with Aztec dancers, followed by “living muertos,” participants dress up as skeletons, and each night the procession leads to the “kiosko,” a covered outdoor stage, to honor a different loved one from the community while free Mexican sweet bread is passed out to all attendees.
Right across the street, La Plaza De Cultura y Artes on Oct 30 will host their family day celebration with a schedule of art and food workshops and performances throughout the day. Students grades K – 12 can pick up an activity guide and after collecting stamps at each activity will get a special Dia de los Muertos gift.
Photo: Rene Trujillo Jr.
Self Help Graphics & Art right across the river in East Los Angeles has been putting on Day of the Dead events for 49 years now. They’re a community based art collective and for 2022 they have planned a slew of exhibits, workshops, performances from Oct 8 all the way to Nov 28. Their main event will be on Nov 5 with exhibitions, live performances and local artisan and food vendors.
Over in Orange County, Santa Ana throws a couple of larger community events. El Centro Cultura de Mexico has been putting on a Noche de Altares, night of the altars, for 20 years and this year the event is on Nov 5. The event is all volunteer run by their community and will feature altars made by the people and organizations in their community.
The next day Nov 6 the Bowers Museum will partake in the festivities with a free event in their courtyard. They’ll be giving guests free Mexican hot chocolate and pan de muerto and will have a large altar set up that any visitor can bring a photo of a loved one that has passed and add on to it.
Although the movie Coco was a great and heartwarming story and large events like Hollywood Forever and Disney Dia de los Muertos are fun, it’s important to remember that this holiday stems from family, community and honoring your ancestors. Check out a Day of the Dead event in your local community to have some fun and give back to your neighbors.
MOLAA Dia de los Muertos – Long Beach
St. Isidore Historical Plaza Dia de los Muertos – Los Alamitos
Olvera Street Dia de los Muertos – DTLA
La Plaza De Cultura y Artes Dia de los Muertos – DTLA
Self Help Graphics Dia de los Muertos – East Los Angeles
El Centro Cultural de México Noche de Altares – Santa Ana
Bowers Museum Day of the Dead – Santa Ana