OKLAHOMA CITY (Free Press) — Thousands of people gathered on Saturday in the vibrant heart of OKC’s Hispanic district for the Fiestas de las America’s parade to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month.
This year marks the 18th anniversary of the day-long parade festivities that pay tribute to Oklahoma’s multi-cultural heritage. The parade kicked off in Calle Dos Cinco in Historic Capitol Hill (NW 25th Street) continuing on into the night.
The family-friendly street festival featured the parade show, a children’s fiesta zone, artisan pop-up shops, multiple international food trucks, an artist alley, a taco-eating contest, and live musical performances.
Nearly 100 participants, including schools, local businesses, and cultural and non-profit organizations came together for this year’s festival.
The festival showcased at least thirteen Spanish-speaking countries with colorful floats, folklore dances, authentic cuisine, and Latin art on display.
“This is our 18th year of Fiestas de las Americas and, for me, this is important because I started as a volunteer and now it’s become this huge community event and I think people are proud of their heritage and it’s an opportunity to educate other people.” Miriam Campos, who serves as the Board Chair of Calle Dos Cinco, said in an interview with the Free Press.
Campos, originally from Zacatecas, Mexico, said she’s happy to see aspects of Mexican culture, being celebrated in Oklahoma City with other communities to help them learn more about what the culture has to offer.
The co-organizer of the Artist Alley, Daisy Muñoz, noted that this marks the third year of their participation. In collaboration with the Oklahoma Museum of Contemporary Art, they have been showcasing local, Latino artists at the festival.
“They’re [the artists] all here from the community. They’re either from the South side or they have been to the Fiestas or they’re Latino/Latinx from here in Oklahoma City,” Muñoz said. “So we want to have more people from OKC to display their art because we have local talent here and we want to showcase that whenever we get the opportunity.”
As the evening progressed, several local dance groups took the main stage kicking off the night with lively musical performances
The Puerto Rican singer/songwriter Lee Hernan and her band performed at 7 p.m. setting the stage for the headliner and Grammy-nominated Latin artist Fulanito who concluded the night with his repertoire of merengue, salsa, and bachata-style music.
Brianna Garcia is a freelance journalist covering local politics and culture for Free Press. She has a degree in Journalism from the University of Central Oklahoma.
