Fiesta de Callejon, hosted on Saturday, March 8, was a big Latin party put on by Seattle University’s Movimiento Estudiantil Chicanx de Aztlan, or MECHA club. MECHA celebrates all Latin American cultures on campus. This year’s legacy event highlighted dances from Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico and El Salvador. Along with the dances, the event highlighted traditional party games that you’ll find at any Latin birthday party.
The event, encapsulated by flags from all over Latin America, kicked off with a traditional dance from Oaxaca, Mexico. The dance was choreographed by Celebracion Chair Rosario Rodriguez, a second- year criminology and psychology major, and dancer Brittany Ramirez Osorio, a fourth-year Spanish and sociology major. Both were involved in the production of the event.
“I am able to showcase my culture, my family is from Oaxaca, and I have had the privilege to learn a few dances from there, while also learning about different dances from different cultures in Latin America,” Ramirez Osorio said.
Dancers known as Chinas Oaxaquenas, walked out carrying large flower baskets on their heads while performing.
Throughout the whole event, attendees experienced different parts of Latin American culture, from the food to the candies placed throughout the tables, and even the games being played on stage. Games included musical chairs, name that tune and pop the balloon. Prizes were given out to winners. The crowd was enraptured by a young boy by the name of Sebastian, who participated in all the games. Unfortunately, Sebastian lost in the final round of musical chairs, but walked away to a round of applause from the crowd.
The value of family runs deep in Latin culture, and that showed on Saturday. Various local families attended the event to support their children. In talking with families, the families expressed a sense of pride seeing their children represent their culture at Seattle U.
“We are proud of our daughter. It’s a grand accomplishment. Some of us come from humble beginnings. To see that one of our children is creating a good life for themselves is a proud moment for us as mothers, brothers, grandparents,” Josephina Vasquez said, whose daughter, Julissa Vazquez-Mejia, participated in the event.
Legacy events like Fiesta de Callejon are a way to reconnect students on campus with their culture. This is a space where people can experience Latin culture and for parents to rejoice in what feels like the lost culture of their home countries.
Another performance included Reggaeton, a genre that mixes hip-hop with Latin music to create a modern style of lLatin music using rapping and singing. Performers came out representing various countries through their outfits. Each performer repped a different Latin country on their shirt.
Kayla Dean, a second-year biochemistry major, has been dancing her whole life.
“Dance allows you to move freely without judgement. It doesn’t require anything, you just start moving,” Dean said.
Specifically, it was the experience of being able to learn a dance from a different culture that Dean enjoyed.
“It’s been so fun. A lot of learning experiences because I am not a Spanish speaker,” Dean said.
In the El Salvador performance, Rodriguez and Osorio were joined by Tito Rios Viche, a fourth-year kinesiology major, and Nayseth Quiroz Perez. The dancers sported blue skirts with white tops as a representation of the El Salvador Flag.
The event also took a moment for Latinx communities affected by the recent news surrounding the uncertainty of undocumented immigrants in the United States. The event took a moment to acknowledge those affected. The video covered the experiences of students during this difficult time, and it ended with a special message of hope, unity and strength. Rodriguez wanted MECHA to become a space for people to take their minds off the bad news going around.
“The election might be one way or the other, I wanted Celebracion to be like, ‘Hey it’s okay, there’s hope.’ When [Ramirez Osorio] brought up the dance of Chinas Oaxaquenas, it was a dance of unity. It made me think about how dance continues to be a way for people to escape,” Rodriguez said.
The event collaborated with Herencias Mexico, a non-profit dance group dedicated to providing folklórico dance classes for all ages. Their dances amazed the crowd and the bright vibrant dresses created a beautiful illusion.
While the celebration continued on the dance floor, MECHA closed the event the way every Latin party begins. If you have ever been to a quinceñera, or a Latin wedding, the best part of the party occurs after all the festivities, when the dance floor opens up. No Rompas Mas Mi Pobre Corazon played as people joined on stage as the Fiesta de Callejon reached the finale.