Día de los Muertos party honors ancestors, family

Amezcua said she is glad the holiday has become more popular, but she said she is anxious that it could be misappropriated when people paint their faces as the skull for Halloween.

“Especially within our pop culture, we’re starting to see more Dia de los Muertos art in film”, Pruneda said.

There’s suddenly a whole bunch of retailers selling Dia de Muertos items, usually shoehorned in with standard Halloween decorations.

“At home, I just do an altar with my loved ones, but in the community, there is dancing and entertainment and a community altar”, she said.

Well, no. It’s not.

Some think that skulls are morbid, but a skull can be decorated with bright colors to create a sense of positivity that gives uniqueness to the holiday. He was a really big role model to me.

So first, what exactly is Dia de Muertos?

El Día de Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a traditional Mexican holiday in which people honor the spirits of those who’ve passed. It’s a national holiday in Mexico!

Mexico City held its first Day of the Dead parade past year, inspired by an episode in the James Bond movie Spectre but embraced by thousands of ordinary participants.

Dia de los Muertos comes alive at Cal State LA. This annual tradition is believed to be a time when the spirits of dead ancestors and relatives return to the world of the living for a visit. The holiday tradition on All Saints Day invokes a mix of pre-Columbian Aztec rituals, plus Christian traditions, said Benjamin Reed, a Jerome resident and Spanish-language radio station on-air personality. Those who celebrate Dia de los Muertos set up altars dedicated to the deceased, filled with pictures in remembrance along with edible treats like pan de muerto (bread of the dead), traditional alcoholic beverages and sugar skulls. There will also be horchata and a hot-chocolate type drink that’s popular for the holiday, Gardner said.

The festival is most closely associated with Mexico but is also celebrated in several other South American and Caribbean countries, including Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Haiti.

In the USA, meanwhile, celebrating the Day of the Dead has been steadily gaining in popularity, to the point where a retailers’ association thinks it might become mainstream by next year.

But she added: “We’re determined to pay tribute (to the victims). And our cultures mix as well”. “Día de Muertos 2017 in Marion will be a unique cultural festival in the region, and an opportunity to celebrate the lives of those we love and miss while sharing in the traditions of our diverse community”.

Last week, as officials in Morelia held a press conference to beckon tourists to the western city’s elaborate Day of the Dead festivities, Vergara silently protested with a sign demanding to know what happened to his missing brother.

Chris Lane is a contributing writer who enjoys covering art, music, pop culture, and social issues.