It’s Cinco de Mayo, but in Oaxaca, like most of Mexico, it’s a business as usual kind of day; schools are in session, businesses and banks are open, and deliveries are being made. The cervesas and mezcal may be flowing and guacamole may be served, but no more than usual. Only in Puebla, where the significantly outnumbered Mexican troops defeated the French army in the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, is it a big deal. However, most every city and village has a street named 5 de mayo and in many, like Oaxaca, a street has been named for Ignacio Zaragoza Seguín, the general who commanded the Mexican army at the Battle of Puebla. By the way, he was born in what was the Mexican village of Bahía del Espíritu Santo, now Goliad, Texas, USA.
As the walls of Oaxaca continue to show, it’s the current battles that remain front and center…
As the mother in the stencil above explains, against the odds like her ancestors 153 years ago, “I will fight today because I don’t want to see you die tomorrow.”
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View From Casita Colibrí 