Milwaukee’s 50th Mexican Fiesta

by Tom Jenz

Aug. 28, 2023

9:52 a.m.

Photo by Tom Jenz

Mexican Fiesta 2023

On Friday, when I walked into the Mexican Fiesta at Milwaukee’s lakefront, I was caught in a tornado of colors swirling and churning, When I think of Mexico, I think colors. There’s no monochrome there. This piece of lakefront had been transformed into a place for Mexican music, art, food, history and culture. Most Latinx residents live on the South Side, and their community spirit had come alive. As I wandered through the festival goers, I noticed a variety of cultural groups and families as if Milwaukee’s ethnic residents had coalesced into one big celebration.

I followed the sound of music and went in search of conversations. Most activities took place inside the vast main pavilion. The front section hummed with vendors standing before long wide tables piled with merchandise. Customers waited in line to make their purchases. Spread out in the middle of the pavilion was a sea of chairs fully occupied by the audience facing the raised stage where a dozen dancers performed to the romping rhythms of mariachi music. Dressed in a flaming array of colorful costumes, the young girl dancers twirled in circles, their dresses flaring like flying birds.

I went behind stage and tracked down Paulo Garcia, the director and choreographer of the dance company. “Most of our dancers are between six years old and 12,” he said. “I’ve been with this dance company since I was a little kid. We practice our routines four nights a week in a building on Mitchell Street. We love performing at the Mexican Fiesta every year. Great audiences.”

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Later, I headed toward the array of vendors and cornered a young boy, Chris Gonzales, and his mom, Sadie, behind their merchandise table. They were selling spirit animals in the form of small charms and collectibles. Gonzales said, “Spirit animals guide you to heaven after you pass. Tradition says that you don’t choose your animal. Your animal chooses you.” I bought an eagle, which represents power. I was hoping the eagle would choose me before I passed on.

Back in the main part of the pavilion, I stopped to chat with the vendor Andrea Andreo. She was selling hand woven stuffed animals, ponchos for dogs, ceramics and a variety of crafts. “Everything is handmade, “she told me, “but my main business is selling and designing furniture, which I sell at my store in Mexico. It’s my first time here in Milwaukee. I like the music, and I like the people. They seem so happy.”

Walking around the grounds, I ran into a teenage dancer on break, Anthony Lopez, his name screened to his T shirt. He said, “I’ve been performing here for four years for the Institution of Cultural Dance. I like how Mexican Fiesta shows our culture from all the different states in Mexico. We celebrate through our dances.”

Next, I stopped to chat with a young couple and their baby in a stroller. Orlando Nixon said he was part Black and part Mexican, and he grew up in the inner city. His girlfriend Anastasia was Black. She was changing a diaper. “We love walking around here,” Nixon said, “especially hearing the music and watching the dancers. Everyone is so friendly.” I left Orlando taking a photo of Anastasia with his iPhone.

Back inside the pavilion, I managed a short conversation with Mary, am artsy-looking white woman, who was carrying a large camera. “I live in the Riverwest neighborhood,” she said. “I’m a photographer and an artist. I came down here to capture the feeling of the event. The Mexican culture is so interesting, rich with artwork, music and dance, very colorful and beautiful. The Latino people are family-oriented and friendly. I like that.”

Before I left, I tracked down Ruben Burgos, president of the Mexican Fiesta board of directors. He began working at the festival 29 years ago as a security guard, Burgos told me, “There are two important parts of Mexican Fiesta. The first is the family participation, I walk through the festival, and I see my aunts, cousins, family I haven’t seen in a while. We are very family-oriented on the south side. Walk our streets and you see people on their porches talking to each other. We know our neighbors. We love talking. We take care of our grandparents, and they take care of us. It’s all about family in our culture. I grew up on the south side on 25th and Scott. Went to Notre Dame High School. I now live in the Bay View area.”

I asked, “And what is the second important part of Mexican Fiesta?”

“The second is the education scholarships,” he said. “The money we make here goes toward scholarships. We’ve given $1.9 million in scholarships the last 50 years—and for the students to go to Wisconsin colleges.”

LEARN MORE

Milwaukee is known as the “city of festivals.” Mexican Fest lived up to the billing.

For over thirty years, through his photographs and narratives, Tom Jenz has been capturing the spirit and soul of America through the parts that are often overlooked. He keeps to the farm and ranch roads or the city streets ...

Aug. 28, 2023

9:52 a.m.