Hola, poetas! Though it’s cloudy today, no lloren*. There’s romance in the air. Here on the West Coast, local restaurants with surnames like "Cantina" and first names like "Dona Margarita" are streaming so many red-and-green flags and streamers you’d think it’s Christmas. Radio shock jocks are punning furiously on cerveza, tequila, and churros. Not sure why the fuss? Here’s a brief history of Cinco de Mayo—the so-called "Mexican Independence Day"*.
How about some poems for cinco de mayo? you plead.
Buena idea, amigos! Check back later today for tributes to three poets of Mexican heritage.
-J.F.
* "don’t cry" May 5, 1862 was the day a group of soldiers in Puebla, Mexico, proved to thousands of French troops that Mexico intended to remain independent of foreign control. Others would argue, though, that the true Mexican Independence Day (independence from Spain) is May 15, 1810.