One of the few things I miss about my hometown of Chicago is St. Patrick’s Day. Even though my ancestry is Scottish and Hungarian, every Chicagoan is Irish on St Pat’s Day and that’s what makes it special.
Not that I was expecting much Hibernian heritage when I moved to New Mexico. When I suggest dying the Rio Grande green nobody knows what I’m talking about. I’m tempted to prank my town’s rattlesnake removal service (yes, we have one) by calling the snake hotline on March 17 and asking for St. Patrick, but they probably wouldn’t get the joke.
Ethnic celebrations are an American tradition that reminds us of our immigrant heritage and honors the melting pot we have become. They are inherently inclusive because everyone, regardless of nationality, is welcome. When I was growing up in Chicago the city had a big celebration and parade for practically every ethnic group. Everyone could be Irish for a day, or Puerto Rican or Greek. Or get stuck in a traffic jam on Kosciuszko Day, as I once did.
Wallethub ranks Albuquerque’s St. Patrick’s Day celebration only 113th of the 200 largest cities in the U.S. The city ranks higher for Cinco de Mayo and goes all out for Dia de los Muertos. I explain to my New Mexico friends that Chicago celebrates the Day of the Dead, too, but there it’s known as election day. Albuquerque also has Celtic, Greek, Asian and Scandinavian festivals that are too small to merit parades and major hoopla.
Columbus Day used to be a big Italian celebration. One of the reasons it became a national holiday was to counter discrimination against Italian-Americans. Canceling Columbus eliminates a celebration that has not been fully replaced (especially for the Italians).
So far Indigenous Peoples Day has been more about airing grievances – like the Festivus holiday popularized by the Seinfeld TV show – and tearing down monuments. I hope this changes as new holidays evolve. Indigenous Peoples Day has tremendous potential for inclusive celebration of a rich heritage and culture. I want to see a big parade in Albuquerque with fry-bread stands.
Juneteenth parades are beginning to take place in some cities and that’s a positive trend. Perhaps the millions of Central Americans wading across the Rio Grande eventually will organize Venezuelan and Honduran festivals wherever they settle. The more the merrier.
Ethnic celebrations are a way of celebrating our diversity that actually unifies us. At a time when Americans are more divided than ever, we need more parades and parties. And maybe a little green beer.