#plaza olvera

[seniaszn]

In a land that they stole from us, we dance on street corners, centers, on concrete for our gentrified people. Instead of our home, on dirt roads, in front of homes for our ancestors.

[rayoffuckingsunshyn]

[spacegrill]

Wishing Well @ Olvera Street

[stmoenica]

Olvera Street, Los Angeles.

[instagram]

Capturing Cinco de Mayo on Instagram

To view more photos and videos from the Cinco de Mayo celebrations explore the Centro Histórico de la Ciudad de Puebla and Plaza Olvera location pages and browse the #cincodemayo hashtag.

On the fifth of May, or el cinco de Mayo, Mexican communities celebrate their heritage. Though Cinco de Mayo as it has come to be known is celebrated primarily by Mexican-American communities in the United States, the holiday's roots begin with the 1862 Battle of Puebla in Puebla, Mexico. In the wake of a series of wars throughout the mid-1800s, the French army marched on Veracruz, sending the Mexican president and government into retreat. At the small city of Puebla, however, Mexican resistance defeated the French army despite being heavily outnumbered. Though not a national holiday in Mexico, the town of Puebla marks the day as an official holiday and celebrates with parades and festivities. Drawing on the bolstered morale and pride from the victory, Mexican-Americans in the western United States first adopted Cinco de Mayo as a holiday in the 1860s. Today, Cinco de Mayo stands as an important celebration of cultural heritage and is celebrated with festivals and performances of traditional mariachi and baile folklórico in cities with large Mexican-American communities such as Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and Houston.

[snapsnapsonia]

Olvera Street, Los Angeles, CA

[thewoodstyledocumentaries-blog]

Meet Emiliano , my new puppet !

[johnfritzlen]

Leaving Life In The Shadows

I was sorry all day yesterday that I was going to miss photographing the May Day demonstrations. I had an afternoon Tai Chi Class in Alhambra. But, when I stepped off the bus at Union Station I heard a celebration going on at La Placita Olvera. The first group of people I encountered is immediately below.

I was struck by the happiness and exuberance of everyone I saw. I wanted to record that.

There are more than 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. It is a life in the shadows. Try imagining it.

To be young, gifted, and undocumented. Our country is losing a lot when we ignore this issue.

One of the concerns with immigration deportations is that families are being separated. Apart from resolving the current situation, we might ask ourselves as a people the following question. "Really, why did we look the other way when millions of people were pouring into the country and performing cheap labor?"

And finally there is the irony of the following image. Please look at the founding date of the church and then remember a little California history.

All Photography Copyright John Fritzlen