Oye Beto, que opinas de que mucha gente cree que el cinco de mayo es nuestro dia de independencia. ¿Te gustaria darnos una pequeña historia de ese dia?
Translation: Hey Beto, whats your opinion on how many people think Cinco de Mayo is our independence day? Would you mind giving us a small history lesson about that day?
This is easy stuff, so we’re only going to go over the most important points:
In 1862 Mexico’s economy was so bad the president declared the external debt couldn’t be paid. Among the countries Mexico owed money to was France, and after negotiations failed they decided to invade Mexico.
In May 5th 1862 general Ignacio Zaragoza’s army defeated the invading army in Puebla. It was an important victory because it was the time a mexican army defeated a much better prepared and better armed foreign army.
(Not that it mattered much cause France ended up winning the war and establishing a short-lived Empire in Mexico, but, whatever)
Mexican Independence is celebrated on September 16 because it started with a call to arms that happened in the early hours of September 16 1810, when priest “Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla” rang the bell of the church in the town of Dolores to gather the townsfolk to revolt against Spain’s reign. This event is known as the “Grito de Dolores” (Cry of Dolores).
For celebration people usually gather on September 15 (usually at night) with friends or family to eat “Antojitos Mexicanos” (traditional mexican dishes/snaks), some people dress up in traditional outfits or they wear the colors of the flag, and just generally hang out and have fun.
In town halls or schools a recreation of the “Grito” is made, giving a speech about Mexico and crying out “Viva Hidalgo” (long live Hidalgo), “Viva Morelos” as well as the names of other “Insurgent Heroes” and ending it with several “Viva Mexico”s.
In conclusion, The Battle of Puebla isnt that significant either historically or culturally, and September 15 is what people actually celebrate.
