The Fiestas de las Americas street festival creates a sense of community, cultural pride.
When I think about the growth of the Latino community in historic Capitol Hill and the construction of the new Calle Dos Cinco Plaza, which is set to break ground later this fall, I must talk about the success of Fiestas de las Américas and the impact this community celebration has had on not only the revitalization of the Calle Dos Cinco business district but the overall transformation of the OKC community.
Fiestas de las Américas street festival goes beyond celebrating Latino culture. It has been key to the revitalization of the Calle Dos Cinco in the Historic Capitol Hill Business District. Growing up in south Oklahoma City, I never had the opportunity to attend an event like this, to be a part of an event where I could feel proud of my Mexican heritage.
Fiestas de las Américas was born in 2006 out of a desire to create a community event that would showcase and bring people to the southside Capitol Hill district, unite our Latino community in a celebration of Latino culture and increase awareness about this vibrant, growing community to the larger Oklahoma City community during Hispanic Heritage Month.
When we began planning this event, we immediately saw this as an opportunity to create something special and unique to this district, something that would honor and bring great pride to the OKC Latino community, helping to rebuild the district.
What began as a small event 17 years ago has become one of the largest, longest-lasting outdoor festivals in Oklahoma City. Through collaboration with local businesses, community partners such as Oklahoma City Public Schools, and dedicated volunteers, this event continues to grow every year. Now, Fiestas is one of the main attractions to the Capitol Hill district. This event went from having 5,000 visitors in 2006 to 20,000 visitors in 2022. Participation in the parade also went from 34 parade entries in the first year to 100 entries in 2022.
Fiesta has provided opportunities to new Latino-owned businesses wanting to showcase and sell their products. Many of these small businesses have grown from a home-based business to a brick-and-mortar location and are contributing to our local economy.
New elements such as a Latino Artist Exhibition, Mercado Artisan Shops and Kids Fiestas Area have been added to the event each year in response to this growth and feedback from the community.
Because of its overwhelming success and visibility, it has served as key to the rebranding and overall improvement of the Historic Capitol Hill Business District.
Since its inception, there have been millions of dollars in private and public project investments, the development of the Capitol Hill Business Improvement District, and most recently as part of the Strong Neighborhood Initiative, the Capitol Hill Plaza Project has become a reality and plans to build are moving forward.
Fiestas de las Americas, which is scheduled this year for Sept. 30, has created a sense of community and cultural pride like no other. Capitol Hill neighbors have come to expect this annual community tradition and look forward to welcoming new visitors and celebrating the impact this Latino community has had on the district and in Oklahoma City. Latino and non-Latino families from all over Oklahoma City come together every year to celebrate and learn more about this rich Latino culture.
Brenda Hernandez is one of the original organizers of Fiestas de las Américas and vice president & co-founder of Tango PR.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Guest: Fiestas de las Americas brings pride to OKC Latino community
