Festival teaches Latino youth about their heritage

The 9th annual Fiesta de Independencia was held Sunday at the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts north of Santa Rosa.|

The next generation was on the minds of many Sunday at the Fiesta de Independencia in Santa Rosa.

Latino youth danced, sang and gave brief presentations about Mexico and other Latin American nations at the 9th annual gathering at the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts.

Grownups watched and spoke of their hopes that such events can help inform young people of their heritage.

A key question for those moving toward adulthood is “What’s my roots?” said Antonio Ramirez, a Windsor resident attending the celebration with his wife, daughter and 6-year-old grandson.

The free fiesta typically draws upwards of 4,000 guests each year, said Anita Wiglesworth, the Luther Burbank Center’s director of programming. The event, part of Latino Heritage Month, provides guests a way to come together and celebrate Latin culture.

“We hope that they feel proud,” said Wiglesworth. “We hope they feel inspired.”

The fiesta included a mix of food, children’s games, information booths and entertainment.

Younger and older performers often shared the stage, including the Aztec dancers Danza Azteca Xantotl of Santa Rosa and the Mexican folk dance group Ballet Folklórico Ireri of Petaluma.

A clear crowd pleaser involved a combination of youth from the Luther Burbank Center’s Mariachi Cantares de mi Tierra with the professional group Mariachi Barragan. The music from nearly two dozen performers featured youth stepping forward to sing and shine on such ballads as “Cerca del Mar.”

José Soto Jr, who leads both the professional mariachi group and the Luther Burbank Center’s free mariachi summer camp, said the youth program allows the next generation to learn about a special part of their heritage.

“I love mariachi,” Soto told the crowd seated nearby beneath a large pavilion.

Under a similarly sized food pavilion, guests selected from such varied offerings as chicharrones preparados, quesadillas, enchiladas, roasted corn and churros. One vendor offered seven types of aguas frescas, including horchata, strawberry and watermelon.

José Castro Gambino of Santa Rosa had just finished dining on pork, beef and chicken tacos. But he noted plenty of other tasty foods.

“I would recommend the pupusas,” he said, a dish from El Salvador that features a thick corn tortilla stuffed with savory fillings.

During the day, members of Roseland University Prep high school’s MEChA club took to the stage, giving the crowd brief highlights about such countries as Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. For Mexico, the students featured details on four states: Michoacan, Oaxaca, Jalisco and Guanajuato.

“I want to tell people about the many cultures we have” in Latin America, said Robert Romero, a sophomore and club member.

Outside the fiesta’s bounce house, Abraham Magaña watched his two sons, Julian, 6, and Leo, 4, and held the key chains and other small prizes they had won from nearby games booths.

Magaña said he wants his children to learn where their father came from in Mexico, and he expected that as they grow older and “start understanding, they’re going to like it.”

But Magaña also wants them to take hold of their identity as Americans.

“Mostly,” he said, “I want them to love their country.”

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