A Mexican Independence Day Festival unfolded in downtown Watsonville Sunday. Put on by Fiestas Patrias, the free event features live music, food booths, arts and crafts and information tables spread out around Watsonville’s downtown plaza and surrounding streets.
The holiday, also known as El Grito de la Independencia (Cry of Independence), is held annually on Sept. 16 in honor of Mexico’s declaration of independence from Spanish rule in 1810. In the early hours of Sept. 16, 1810, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a priest in the small town of Dolores, Guanajuato, rang the church bell to gather the townspeople. He called for the people of Mexico to rise up against the Spanish crown, initiating Mexico’s War of Independence, according to the website Imagine Mexico.
Fiestas Patrias of Watsonville is an all-volunteer community organization that supports local businesses in building bridges of understanding within the community. The annual festivals of Fiestas Patrias bring together an average of 10,000 participants from the Central Coast to celebrate and learn about the heritage and culture of Mexico.
