Westwood Celebrates History and Community at Cinco De Mayo Event

For decades, the history and heritage behind the celebration of Cinco de Mayo has often been drowned out by marketing from big beer companies. Activists in the primarily Mexican-American Westwood neighborhood want to change that, and for the third year in a row, community partners there are holding a wide-ranging celebration of their culture. The event is free to attend and takes places this Saturday, May 6, led by the food-, aid- and art-focused business collective Hecho en Westwood. We discussed the event with several leaders of the movement, which is shining a light on the art and culture thriving on the streets of southwest Denver today.

“Cinco de Mayo is sometimes confused as Mexican Independence Day,” explains Hecho en Westwood founder Damaris Ronkanen, who is also the owner of…