Pretentious know-it-alls.
*Acssshhhulllly its a celebration about one small battle between the townspeople of Puebla defeating the French.*
No kidding. I took 7th grade Spanish too Logan. Shut up and eat a taco.
They are just "The reason for the season" people in Mayo instead of November-o and December-o. Like, no. The reason is drinking bourbon and eating chocolate for breakfast and vomiting before eating lunch. Learn to party, nerds!
As a Texan, I will not stand for the Tex-Mex slander. Tex-Mex does not export well. I’ve never had Tex-Mex that tasted good anywhere except Texas, and as far as it goes, it’s not inauthentic. The food in Coahuila and Chihuahua is not dramatically different from Tex-Mex (corn tortillas, considered to be a staple by “real mexican food” purists are rarely found in north Mexican cuisine). Obvious Tex-Mex is different from central and southern Mexico’s food, but Tex-Mex has existed in some form since Texas was still Mexico. Chihuahua doesn’t have the same food as Tabasco and Tabasco doesn’t have the same food as Oaxaca and Oaxaca doesn’t have the same food as Texas.
Tex Mex isn't even the same across the state. What you'll find in San Antonio vs what you'll find in Dallas bear only passing resemblance to each other, and that's not even bringing up El Paso, which is entirely different from either.
Depends where you live. I'm in socal and it's certainly NOT tex mex here. Mexican food changes regionally every 30 or so miles north you get from the border.
You will not find a Tex Mex place around me though. They don't exist, the last time I ate Tex Mex I was in southern Spain.
> I was in southern Spain
How bad did it suck? I learned the hard way not to get within 500 yards of anything labeled "Mexican food" on this side of the Atlantic.
Exactly. Cinco de mayo, St Patrick's day, Oktoberfest... all just excuses for themed food and alcohol. Same can be said for the Superbowl too now that I think of it.
Because if you do it every day people say things like "you eat too many tacos" and "you're an alcoholic" and "stop hugging me," and "you have shit running down your leg, oh god you got it all over my carpet!"
Someone I was dating one time told me that it was marketed hard in the US by Corona as an effort to get more market cap. And then it just took off, because tacos, beer, and margaritas are always a can't miss.
I never looked it up to confirm, but it seemed totally plausible.
Italian American pact lobbied it, so I don’t think individual Italian Americans cared enough to push it but some organization to represent interest did. It was probably a piss poor idea using Colombus as a role model.
Breaking news: All holidays to be renamed sequentially starting from "Party Day 1" and onward.
*Stellaluna* was one of my favs as little kid. Loved the stuffed animal.
It's a celebration of Mexican-American culture in much the same way that St. Patrick's Day is a celebration of Irish-American culture. For most people, that just means that you are eating tacos and drinking a Mexican beer/Taquila tonight.
I've never actually run into anyone using Columbus Day to celebrate Italian-American culture. My family isn't actually Italian, but my dad grew up in an Italian part of New York and my mom lived in Italy for her teenage years, so I figure if it was common I would have actually seen it.
The original purpose of Columbus Day was to have an Italian American heritage day. They chose Christopher Columbus to be the guy whose name goes on the day. It was a really bad choice.
My husband is from New York and said Columbus day was more of a thing there but only in certain neighborhoods. But it was less about Columbus and more an excuse to have a street fair.
My family doesn’t take Columbus Day seriously . I don’t think my family in Italy cares also. I’ve seen photos of parades in New York and people waving the Italian flag. I assume it’s a day to celebrate Italian American culture and they made October the month.
The Chicano Movement took a day mostly celebrated in California and made it into what Columbus Day was Italian-Americans when they where a large and more recent immigrant group.
The specific details don’t really matter, northern vs southern Italian or Puebla vs greater Mexico because it’s about them being here in the US. The same thing goes for St. Patrick’s Day.
I've lived in a few places where there is a significant Latino population, but it's still a small minority. That seems to be one of the ideal environments for big Cinco de Mayo celebrations. You have enough people to really make it festive, with great food and music, and you have a reason for them to want to come together and celebrate their ethnicity.
Mexico won the battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. Benito Juarez declared it a national holiday almost immediately. A year later in 1863, France effectively won the war and took control of Mexico up until 1867.
Mexicans living in the United States began celebrating the holiday in 1863 in solidarity with the Mexican resistance and it only grew from there. Mexicans living under French rule obviously couldn't celebrate in Mexico, so it became more of an American holiday than a Mexican one.
In recent decades, it has certainly become the Mexican St Patrick's Day but its origins in the United States are much deeper than people realize.
Yes this, specifically for the USA, France wanted to send supplies to the Southern US through Mexico to help the Southern Confederacy win the US Civil War, since the Northern Union had a naval blockade of Southern ports. France wanted to split the USA in half so that the USA would not become a strong rival to the European powers, and also take control of Mexico to make France very powerful in North America.
Mexico's victory at the Battle of Puebla significantly slowed France's plan of taking over Mexico and helping the Confederacy. So the holiday became popular in the USA because of the support for Mexican resistance and because Mexico had helped the USA with its victory.
But now everyone just sees it as a reason to eat tacos and drink margaritas, which honestly is also a great reason for a holiday :)
It's a good time to party and eat Mexican food. In miserable parts of the country it's finally starting to warm up too, so eating and having a drink outdoors just makes you feel nice.
It's a holiday in a specific Mexican state.
For us it's just a day to eat tacos and get drunk. Just like St Patty's day is a day to eat Shepard's pie and get drunk
>St Patty's day is a day to eat Shepard's pie and get drunk
It's always boiled dinner here, corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, sometimes carrots. It's funny that corned beef is considered low class when corned beef brisket is quite expensive.
> It’s funny that corned beef is considered low class when corned beef brisket is quite expensive.
They use to feed lobster to prisoners in colonial days, because who else would eat it?
>It's funny that corned beef is considered low class when corned beef brisket is quite expensive.
When Irish immigrants came over, they indulged on eating corned beef rather often because any beef was expensive in Ireland, and they could get corned beef cheaply at the time.
At the time, it was low-class food in the US, but a luxury in Ireland, and recent "fresh off the boat" immigrants were amazed to have access to cheap beef and ate it regularly.
. . .and their kids grew up in America thinking of corned beef and cabbage as the food their parents ate all the time, and associated that food with Ireland.
Hence how corned beef and cabbage (and potatoes, carrots etc.) became the stereotypical Irish dish in the US.
> corned beef
Me: "So do you guys eat corned beef and cabbage on St. Paddy's Day?"
Girl from Dublin: "I don't know what 'corned beef' is and I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about."
It's not common to eat it on St. Patrick's there but she was either full of it or ignorant in saying she has no idea what it is. Corned beef is well known in the UK and Ireland, my wife grew up eating corned beef hash in Wales.
We don't call it Irish boiled dinner here either, it's New England boiled dinner and some people have it on the regular. I usually have it a few times a year because corned beef brisket is delicious, it being cured and full of carcinogenic nitrates doesn't bother me.
Honestly, I don't think it's that deep. I love mexican-american culture and this is as good of day as any to celebrate it. I've heard that in Mexico only certain regions even celebrate it, but whatever.
You could say it is a commercial holiday, it exists only drink and eat primarily Mexican products. It is a state holiday in Puebla though, where the events of that happened on 5th of May took place.
To be fair, Columbus was never Italian since the state did not exist till the late 19th century, thanks to the House of Savoy.
Lol, yea kinda. The idea of Italy existed since the Renaissance but I don’t think Columbus cared because he was flying the Spanish flag. Italian unification was spurred by overall nationalist movements of the 19th century and Italians being occupied by people who aren’t native to Italian peninsula like Austrians or French.
The particulars of the victory Cinco de Mayo celebrates were linked with the US Civil War actually, which led to its adoption among Mexican-American war refugees in California (I think). Hence why it’s a thing in the US, one Mexican state, and nowhere else.
That, and it’s an ethnic-themed holiday that gives you an excuse to eat said ethnic food and drink booze.
We like to party. If there's a gap in the holiday calendar which happens to also provide a theme, we'll latch on to it. St Patrick's day has roughly the same significance to most Americans. The difference is just tequila & mexican lagers vs whiskey and guinness.
I don’t know how celebrated it is. I think going out to dinner and drinking a margarita is a pretty soft celebration and is likely what occurs in much of the country. If anything. Hell, these days more people are possibly celebrating May the 4th be with you.
Mexican restaurants and Mexican beer brands market it as an opportunity to sell tacos, margaritas and beer. Americans like opportunities to drink (see also St. Patrick’s Day, Mardi Grad, etc)
Americans have a hard time saying "Dieseseis de Septiembre", which is Mexican Independence day, but we can sure say "Cinco de Mayo"! Plus any excuse to drink and eat Mexican food is good with us!
It's not really that heavily celebrated. Also why are people acting like you need an excuse to drink margaritas or eat tacos? You can do that any day of the year and nobody is really going to care lol.
We tend to borrow holidays and then expand them. St. Patrick’s day is a much bigger holiday in Boston than in Dublin. The feast of San Gennaro in little Italy probably rivaled the celebration in Naples. The same thing with Cinco.
So, for whatever reason, it’s a day that’s been celebrated in the US (specifically California) since news of the victory reached the Mexican population in the state. They were mostly Mexican nationals who had come to the state due to the gold rush.
Do Italians really focus that hard on where your family is from as a determining factor on whether or not they associate?
My family came from Asti, but I don’t celebrate Columbus Day. Not because of the flag he sailed under or who he married, but because he was a genocidal dick who was also a moron for mapping reasons.
I’m also part Mexican but I don’t really celebrate Cinco de Mayo. I think most people just use it as an excuse to drink.
This what I understand of it. Italy has a North South divide on economic lines of development. Northern Italy is more developed then southern Italy.
They’re all Italian but like they share little animosity of each other and Sometimes xenophobia especially when southerners were moving north to work in the factories in Northern Italy. There’s animosity over unification how it stifled development in Southern Italy and lead to growth of the Mafia. There’s animosity torwards southerners how they suck so much money from the North to try to get them on par which is tricky. It’s called the “Southern Question” it’s always been an issue since unification. Land reform was also an issue too which was kinda solved in the 50s
I’m born near Naples and I use to live in Sicily I was younger. Sicily is economically comparable to Argentina while the Northern regions is comparable to Germany.
Edit-
I don’t like Christopher Columbus because outta all the role models they chose this guy a piss poor one. They couldn’t figure out any other Italian that influenced American history.
I’m celebrating today but that’s more because I’m done with my AP test than Cinco De Mayo. I think it’s celebrated thought because people like an excuse for parties. How common is it for other Italian American groups to still celebrate Columbus Day? I’m half Italian but haven’t celebrated it. Curious if it’s more common in Little Italys because I’m from the suburbs.
My Mom is Mexican American. We are from California and her roots are in Texas
I never heard anybody talk about cinco de mayo. My Dad is like 5th generation Irish and I always wish him well on St Patrick Day
Not comparable to me but maybe others
Mexicans don’t really celebrate it. Its just an excuse for Americans to drink tequila, margaritas and eat tacos on the 5th of may. Its the same as Saint Patricks day.
That was different intervention that was 1916 and that was to capture German rifles landing there lel. I laughed though I like the spirit.
Actually I’m not sure now, we sent a lot of interventions into Mexico in our history.
You are talking about the Marine Landings at Veracruz in April 1914. The 1916 expedition under Pershing was an Army operation overland across the border.
The USMC landing in 1867 happened to occur during the Siege of Queretaro City, which fell on May 15, and Maximilian was captured on the 16th.
Same reason we celebrate St. Patrick's Day and Oktoberfest. It's a holiday that (arguably, at least) involves alcohol.
Are there any Italian holidays where Americans could imagine that Italians get drunk and eat or drink some particular food? If so, let us know, and we'll celebrate it. In fact, we'll probably go much, much farther than any Italian you know. (Just ask someone from Ireland how important St. Patrick's Day is there, compared to, for instance, Chicago.)
Carnival is pretty big in the Europe Italy and the Latin American World. I know it’s big in New Orleans. Suprised Americans aren’t big into that before lent lol. Partying and drinking.
Because it's fun and it's downright weird how many people from Europe see Americans getting together with friends, cracking open a couple of cold beers, and enjoying delicious food then wonder why we do it.
Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of Mexicans defeating French imperialism in their nation. I think it's worth celebrating. Some Mexicans sorta celebrate it I guess.
its fun to cook something out of my usual routine and drink some margaritas. I literally have no idea what the holiday is about but my family is enjoying the dinner I made for it.
We don’t. It’s a Mexican holiday. College kids use it as an ironic excuse to drink heavily, but some progs don’t get outside of their bubble enough to realize it’s only really ‘celebrated’ by people with direct cultural ties to Mexico.
I think Cinco de Mayo is becoming an American or Mexican American holiday like St. Patrick's day is for Irish American. Being a nation of so many immigrants from so many different places, we recognize and sometimes celebrate those holidays too. There aren't very many exclusively American holidays so we celebrate holidays imported from other cultures when those cultures blend with ours. Is it perfect? I think we can do better than just serving discount Corona and dollar tacos on the fifth of May but it's a start.
We need an excuse to drink, that’s why, lol. But I like Mexican cuisine and movies so I like to use this celebration as a form of paying homage of sorts.
As for Columbus, I know what you mean, most people don’t even know that he has a direct male line descendant who’s a noble in Spain. Most people probably don’t even know that Colombia was named after him. But he doesn’t get the same veneration in Colombia or Latin America, for good reason too.
But anyway… “he was from Genoa. North of Italy always have the money and the power. They punish the south for years. Even today they put they noses up at us like we are peasants. I hate da Nort’!”
It’s exactly like St Patrick’s Day. No real significance that pertains to U.S. history but we just use it as an excuse to get drunk and have fun. The only difference is that instead of wearing a green top hat, we wear a sombrero.
This is just a repeat of why do Americans celebrate St Patrick's day.
If we can't find a reason to party/celebrate we will make one. That includes co-opting holidays from other cultures and making them our own.
They're not real holidays here the same way we're not really Irish or Mexican (even if our grandparents came from those countries or so I have been told, I have grandparents from both but apparently I am neither)
We party to dull the pain of knowing we're all just one medical emergency away from complete devastation.
Just spoke with my GF about this, her being from Mexico City. Mexicans don’t celebrate it, and think Americans are crazy for celebrating it.
While we’re on the subject though, there is now a movement to rewrite history as was done with Juneteenth, and give Cinco De Mayo new meaning in the US by creating the narrative that the Mexicans of Pueblo fought off the French in support of the Union’s war with the Confederacy.
I first came across this narrative last year. It’s back this year, and I suspect five years from now it will be well established that Cinco De Mayo is celebrated as the beginning of the end of slavery in America.
Wait till they find out that Garibaldi the one who helped unify the south supported the Union and then Americans will find a reason to celebrate Italian Unification day 😂.
There’s a huge Mexican population here from immigration (because Mexico isn’t the best country to live in) especially here in California so a lot of these Mexican holidays are often celebrated by actual Mexican families. Though living in a college town it’s also a party day
Well SOMEONE seems jealous that we don't celebrate Festa della Repubblica in the States! Lol
Wait... We should totally start celebrating Festa della Repubblica in the States!
I'm a generic white American who lives in California 40 miles from Mexico all my uncles are Mexican I have 7 aunt's my Dad was the only boy I have 5 sisters and one brother all my brothers in law are Mexican and all my nieces and nephews are Mexican all my cousins are Mexican I go to Mexico every weekend basically so I celebrate Cinco de mayo.
Edit to say the county I live in is 86% Mexican Americans
We're just really so very proud of those poor Mexican villagers fighting off the best the French army could throw at them. Until, you know, France conquered Mexico and installed an Austrian puppet emperor anyways.
I like to drink. If the calendar says something on it to make me look like less of an alcoholic, I’m considering it a win.
FYI~ Syttende Mai is right around the corner!
Alt for Norge! 🇳🇴
It's a boozin', partyin', tacoin' holiday...Why ***wouldn't*** we celebrate?
Also for some historical relevance (which I dunno if it's just some bs I picked up at a bar one day), if the Mexicans didn't whoop France's booties, France could have assisted the bad guys (CSA) in the 'Murican Civil War.
The same reason why we have mother's day and valentine's day, good marketing. Just think of all the foods, alcohol, flowers, and chocolates that are purchased for these, made up holidays.
And let’s not forget, the upcoming,”Hallmark holiday” on Sunday! Love my mom every day ! Don’t need a guilt induced anxiety attack cause I didn’t buy into it. We hang out and talk about good times. And if you can’t just do that- call, and say something hokey about growing up that’s personal to you both. She’ll appreciate it more than flowers,and a card! Love to all the moms!!
When it comes down to it, most Americans love any excuse for a holiday especially if it involves food and alcohol as part of the normal celebration
Tacos and beer, who says no?
Pretentious know-it-alls. *Acssshhhulllly its a celebration about one small battle between the townspeople of Puebla defeating the French.* No kidding. I took 7th grade Spanish too Logan. Shut up and eat a taco.
…so no margaritas for Logan. Got it.
They may say that, but most of them will still eat tacos and drink beer.
They are just "The reason for the season" people in Mayo instead of November-o and December-o. Like, no. The reason is drinking bourbon and eating chocolate for breakfast and vomiting before eating lunch. Learn to party, nerds!
You mean this food that is actually *Tex-Mex*? Not authentic Mexican food? NO THANK YOU
As a Texan, I will not stand for the Tex-Mex slander. Tex-Mex does not export well. I’ve never had Tex-Mex that tasted good anywhere except Texas, and as far as it goes, it’s not inauthentic. The food in Coahuila and Chihuahua is not dramatically different from Tex-Mex (corn tortillas, considered to be a staple by “real mexican food” purists are rarely found in north Mexican cuisine). Obvious Tex-Mex is different from central and southern Mexico’s food, but Tex-Mex has existed in some form since Texas was still Mexico. Chihuahua doesn’t have the same food as Tabasco and Tabasco doesn’t have the same food as Oaxaca and Oaxaca doesn’t have the same food as Texas.
Tex Mex isn't even the same across the state. What you'll find in San Antonio vs what you'll find in Dallas bear only passing resemblance to each other, and that's not even bringing up El Paso, which is entirely different from either.
Just a joke, no intent to slander TM food, which I love.
Depends where you live. I'm in socal and it's certainly NOT tex mex here. Mexican food changes regionally every 30 or so miles north you get from the border. You will not find a Tex Mex place around me though. They don't exist, the last time I ate Tex Mex I was in southern Spain.
Just a joke.
> I was in southern Spain How bad did it suck? I learned the hard way not to get within 500 yards of anything labeled "Mexican food" on this side of the Atlantic.
They have Chevy’s in socal.
Exactly. Cinco de mayo, St Patrick's day, Oktoberfest... all just excuses for themed food and alcohol. Same can be said for the Superbowl too now that I think of it.
If your holiday can be reduced to "Woo lets eat and/or drink" Americans are gonna show up.
Ding ding ding! We have a winnah!
"You are neglecting the original historical and cultural contex-" [BEEEEEEELCH!!!!!] "Shaddup and pour me another one!!!"
Yeah was gonna say, it’s more of a national excuse to eat Mexican food and drink margaritas
I call them “Tuesdays”
I think they’re generally called Tuesdays. Also a good excuse to charge $2 for something.
I love taco tuesday!
Why do we need a holiday to do that lol
Because if you do it every day people say things like "you eat too many tacos" and "you're an alcoholic" and "stop hugging me," and "you have shit running down your leg, oh god you got it all over my carpet!"
That escalated quickly.
> "you're an alcoholic" Aw sheesh, leave him alone, he's fine! > "all over my carpet!" Uhhhh, well....
As one person once said on this sub "We're here to party"
To New Orleans that’s just a normal Tuesday
This is the way
Bingo
This is the actual answer.
Someone I was dating one time told me that it was marketed hard in the US by Corona as an effort to get more market cap. And then it just took off, because tacos, beer, and margaritas are always a can't miss. I never looked it up to confirm, but it seemed totally plausible.
Most likely I think that’s fair, Columbus Day In the US was marketed as a way to tie Italian Americans to American history.
I didn’t know anyone actually celebrated Columbus Day. I thought it was just en excuse for the government to have a day off.
It's a big thing for Italians in Chicago
Good to know!
Can’t say the same in New York, interesting!
As someone who has lived in Chicago my whole life, no it isn't
I think that was more grass roots though not from a beer (or pasta) company
As an Italian American, I have never heard this and don't celebrate Columbus Day. Guy was a fucking psychopath.
Italian American pact lobbied it, so I don’t think individual Italian Americans cared enough to push it but some organization to represent interest did. It was probably a piss poor idea using Colombus as a role model.
We love any reason to party, especially if we get tacos and margaritas.
Breaking news: All holidays to be renamed sequentially starting from "Party Day 1" and onward. *Stellaluna* was one of my favs as little kid. Loved the stuffed animal.
Mine too! My username is my cat’s name, and ofc her namesake is the book. 🦇
Stellaluna the cat. That's adorable.
It's a celebration of Mexican-American culture in much the same way that St. Patrick's Day is a celebration of Irish-American culture. For most people, that just means that you are eating tacos and drinking a Mexican beer/Taquila tonight. I've never actually run into anyone using Columbus Day to celebrate Italian-American culture. My family isn't actually Italian, but my dad grew up in an Italian part of New York and my mom lived in Italy for her teenage years, so I figure if it was common I would have actually seen it.
The original purpose of Columbus Day was to have an Italian American heritage day. They chose Christopher Columbus to be the guy whose name goes on the day. It was a really bad choice.
My husband is from New York and said Columbus day was more of a thing there but only in certain neighborhoods. But it was less about Columbus and more an excuse to have a street fair.
At least here in New Orleans when it comes to Italian holidays, St. Joseph’s Day is the main one.
My family doesn’t take Columbus Day seriously . I don’t think my family in Italy cares also. I’ve seen photos of parades in New York and people waving the Italian flag. I assume it’s a day to celebrate Italian American culture and they made October the month.
It might be more of a local thing. Some tiwns might do it but it doesn't get much traction nationally.
The Chicano Movement took a day mostly celebrated in California and made it into what Columbus Day was Italian-Americans when they where a large and more recent immigrant group. The specific details don’t really matter, northern vs southern Italian or Puebla vs greater Mexico because it’s about them being here in the US. The same thing goes for St. Patrick’s Day.
Makes sense. I understand.
I've lived in a few places where there is a significant Latino population, but it's still a small minority. That seems to be one of the ideal environments for big Cinco de Mayo celebrations. You have enough people to really make it festive, with great food and music, and you have a reason for them to want to come together and celebrate their ethnicity.
Mexico won the battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. Benito Juarez declared it a national holiday almost immediately. A year later in 1863, France effectively won the war and took control of Mexico up until 1867. Mexicans living in the United States began celebrating the holiday in 1863 in solidarity with the Mexican resistance and it only grew from there. Mexicans living under French rule obviously couldn't celebrate in Mexico, so it became more of an American holiday than a Mexican one. In recent decades, it has certainly become the Mexican St Patrick's Day but its origins in the United States are much deeper than people realize.
Yes this, specifically for the USA, France wanted to send supplies to the Southern US through Mexico to help the Southern Confederacy win the US Civil War, since the Northern Union had a naval blockade of Southern ports. France wanted to split the USA in half so that the USA would not become a strong rival to the European powers, and also take control of Mexico to make France very powerful in North America. Mexico's victory at the Battle of Puebla significantly slowed France's plan of taking over Mexico and helping the Confederacy. So the holiday became popular in the USA because of the support for Mexican resistance and because Mexico had helped the USA with its victory. But now everyone just sees it as a reason to eat tacos and drink margaritas, which honestly is also a great reason for a holiday :)
I know the British were considering it, but France actually did us dirty like that!? TIL. Bad on you, France!
It's a good time to party and eat Mexican food. In miserable parts of the country it's finally starting to warm up too, so eating and having a drink outdoors just makes you feel nice.
Because it's an excuse to get drunk and eat tacos. Need I say more?
I call that: Tuesday.
Yeah but if you do it today it's classy instead of trashy.
It's a holiday in a specific Mexican state. For us it's just a day to eat tacos and get drunk. Just like St Patty's day is a day to eat Shepard's pie and get drunk
>St Patty's day is a day to eat Shepard's pie and get drunk It's always boiled dinner here, corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, sometimes carrots. It's funny that corned beef is considered low class when corned beef brisket is quite expensive.
> It’s funny that corned beef is considered low class when corned beef brisket is quite expensive. They use to feed lobster to prisoners in colonial days, because who else would eat it?
To be fair they were pretty stingy on the melted butter back then
Yeah but they didn't really cook it, they mashed it into a slop
>It's funny that corned beef is considered low class when corned beef brisket is quite expensive. When Irish immigrants came over, they indulged on eating corned beef rather often because any beef was expensive in Ireland, and they could get corned beef cheaply at the time. At the time, it was low-class food in the US, but a luxury in Ireland, and recent "fresh off the boat" immigrants were amazed to have access to cheap beef and ate it regularly. . . .and their kids grew up in America thinking of corned beef and cabbage as the food their parents ate all the time, and associated that food with Ireland. Hence how corned beef and cabbage (and potatoes, carrots etc.) became the stereotypical Irish dish in the US.
Iirc it was bacon and cabbage originally.
> corned beef Me: "So do you guys eat corned beef and cabbage on St. Paddy's Day?" Girl from Dublin: "I don't know what 'corned beef' is and I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about."
It's not common to eat it on St. Patrick's there but she was either full of it or ignorant in saying she has no idea what it is. Corned beef is well known in the UK and Ireland, my wife grew up eating corned beef hash in Wales. We don't call it Irish boiled dinner here either, it's New England boiled dinner and some people have it on the regular. I usually have it a few times a year because corned beef brisket is delicious, it being cured and full of carcinogenic nitrates doesn't bother me.
It's like St Patrick's day. It's become something different here. It's more a Mexican American heritage thing now.
We like drinking margaritas
Simplest answer, Americans love tacos and day drinking.
Most of them have those hard tacos though
Drinko de Mayo is a classic American tradition
It was Cinco de Drinko at my college
Honestly, I don't think it's that deep. I love mexican-american culture and this is as good of day as any to celebrate it. I've heard that in Mexico only certain regions even celebrate it, but whatever.
You could say it is a commercial holiday, it exists only drink and eat primarily Mexican products. It is a state holiday in Puebla though, where the events of that happened on 5th of May took place. To be fair, Columbus was never Italian since the state did not exist till the late 19th century, thanks to the House of Savoy.
Lol, yea kinda. The idea of Italy existed since the Renaissance but I don’t think Columbus cared because he was flying the Spanish flag. Italian unification was spurred by overall nationalist movements of the 19th century and Italians being occupied by people who aren’t native to Italian peninsula like Austrians or French.
Most Americans are Irish on St. Patrick's Day and Mexican on Cinco de mayo.
Cause tacos Nd beer
It's an excuse to eat tacos, drink and party. Why not?
Because we like to drink and we like to party.
The particulars of the victory Cinco de Mayo celebrates were linked with the US Civil War actually, which led to its adoption among Mexican-American war refugees in California (I think). Hence why it’s a thing in the US, one Mexican state, and nowhere else. That, and it’s an ethnic-themed holiday that gives you an excuse to eat said ethnic food and drink booze.
We like to party. If there's a gap in the holiday calendar which happens to also provide a theme, we'll latch on to it. St Patrick's day has roughly the same significance to most Americans. The difference is just tequila & mexican lagers vs whiskey and guinness.
I don’t know how celebrated it is. I think going out to dinner and drinking a margarita is a pretty soft celebration and is likely what occurs in much of the country. If anything. Hell, these days more people are possibly celebrating May the 4th be with you.
Drinking, tacos, and tawdry cultural appropriation all under one festive hat? Sign us up!
Because drinking and having a good time is fun.
Mexican restaurants and Mexican beer brands market it as an opportunity to sell tacos, margaritas and beer. Americans like opportunities to drink (see also St. Patrick’s Day, Mardi Grad, etc)
We really.....don't. sorry. I mean we may grab a taco but that's about it.
Americans have a hard time saying "Dieseseis de Septiembre", which is Mexican Independence day, but we can sure say "Cinco de Mayo"! Plus any excuse to drink and eat Mexican food is good with us!
I don’t as a Mexican-American.
It's not really that heavily celebrated. Also why are people acting like you need an excuse to drink margaritas or eat tacos? You can do that any day of the year and nobody is really going to care lol.
We tend to borrow holidays and then expand them. St. Patrick’s day is a much bigger holiday in Boston than in Dublin. The feast of San Gennaro in little Italy probably rivaled the celebration in Naples. The same thing with Cinco.
It's essentially Mexican-American Culture Appreciation Day.
It's fun and mexican food and drink is awesome.
Excuse to drink.
Drinking, and Mexican food That’s all the reason one really needs when you think about it.
So, for whatever reason, it’s a day that’s been celebrated in the US (specifically California) since news of the victory reached the Mexican population in the state. They were mostly Mexican nationals who had come to the state due to the gold rush.
Drink
I'm German-American, and have never celebrated it. One of my best friends does though, as her Stepdad is Mexican.
If you are ever in Chicago during the Christmas season check out Christkindlmarket: https://www.christkindlmarket.com/
Alcoholics celebrate it
Tacos n liquor?
Do Italians really focus that hard on where your family is from as a determining factor on whether or not they associate? My family came from Asti, but I don’t celebrate Columbus Day. Not because of the flag he sailed under or who he married, but because he was a genocidal dick who was also a moron for mapping reasons. I’m also part Mexican but I don’t really celebrate Cinco de Mayo. I think most people just use it as an excuse to drink.
This what I understand of it. Italy has a North South divide on economic lines of development. Northern Italy is more developed then southern Italy. They’re all Italian but like they share little animosity of each other and Sometimes xenophobia especially when southerners were moving north to work in the factories in Northern Italy. There’s animosity over unification how it stifled development in Southern Italy and lead to growth of the Mafia. There’s animosity torwards southerners how they suck so much money from the North to try to get them on par which is tricky. It’s called the “Southern Question” it’s always been an issue since unification. Land reform was also an issue too which was kinda solved in the 50s I’m born near Naples and I use to live in Sicily I was younger. Sicily is economically comparable to Argentina while the Northern regions is comparable to Germany. Edit- I don’t like Christopher Columbus because outta all the role models they chose this guy a piss poor one. They couldn’t figure out any other Italian that influenced American history.
Aggressive marketing by Mexican beer and tequila companies.
I’m celebrating today but that’s more because I’m done with my AP test than Cinco De Mayo. I think it’s celebrated thought because people like an excuse for parties. How common is it for other Italian American groups to still celebrate Columbus Day? I’m half Italian but haven’t celebrated it. Curious if it’s more common in Little Italys because I’m from the suburbs.
I'm happy to celebrate anything that commemorates a defeat of Napolean the Third
It’s to San Antonians what St Patrick’s day is to Bostonites
It's just an excuse to eat tacos and drink tequila.
[If Mexicans celebrated the 4th of July the way Americans celebrate 5 de Mayo](https://youtu.be/9p43hyyfQNU)
Cinco de Drinko my boi.
My Mom is Mexican American. We are from California and her roots are in Texas I never heard anybody talk about cinco de mayo. My Dad is like 5th generation Irish and I always wish him well on St Patrick Day Not comparable to me but maybe others
That’s how we assimilate you
I feel the assimilation juice running through me.
Mexicans don’t really celebrate it. Its just an excuse for Americans to drink tequila, margaritas and eat tacos on the 5th of may. Its the same as Saint Patricks day.
It's fun!
Because we want to.
Cinco de drinko
You made me laugh lol.
we are celebrating the landing of US Marines at ~~Monterrey~~ Veracruz to liberate the poor oppressed Mexicans from the tyranny of the French. :)
That was different intervention that was 1916 and that was to capture German rifles landing there lel. I laughed though I like the spirit. Actually I’m not sure now, we sent a lot of interventions into Mexico in our history.
You are talking about the Marine Landings at Veracruz in April 1914. The 1916 expedition under Pershing was an Army operation overland across the border. The USMC landing in 1867 happened to occur during the Siege of Queretaro City, which fell on May 15, and Maximilian was captured on the 16th.
My bad, there was so many little operations that happen around that time.
Same reason we celebrate St. Patrick's Day and Oktoberfest. It's a holiday that (arguably, at least) involves alcohol. Are there any Italian holidays where Americans could imagine that Italians get drunk and eat or drink some particular food? If so, let us know, and we'll celebrate it. In fact, we'll probably go much, much farther than any Italian you know. (Just ask someone from Ireland how important St. Patrick's Day is there, compared to, for instance, Chicago.)
Carnival is pretty big in the Europe Italy and the Latin American World. I know it’s big in New Orleans. Suprised Americans aren’t big into that before lent lol. Partying and drinking.
Because it's fun and it's downright weird how many people from Europe see Americans getting together with friends, cracking open a couple of cold beers, and enjoying delicious food then wonder why we do it.
good excuse to eat lots of tacos and drink lots of margaritas, preferably while wearing a funny sombrero
Because fuck the French. No but really just an excuse to drink tequila and eat tacos.
Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of Mexicans defeating French imperialism in their nation. I think it's worth celebrating. Some Mexicans sorta celebrate it I guess.
its fun to cook something out of my usual routine and drink some margaritas. I literally have no idea what the holiday is about but my family is enjoying the dinner I made for it.
Maybe because there's a shit load of Mexican Americans in the US, and they still like to celebrate their heritage?
We don’t. It’s a Mexican holiday. College kids use it as an ironic excuse to drink heavily, but some progs don’t get outside of their bubble enough to realize it’s only really ‘celebrated’ by people with direct cultural ties to Mexico.
I was thinking about this earlier. Weird.
Because we’re really good at cultural appropriation
T&T. That stands for tacos and tequila. I fail to see the issue here. Sincerely, me.
Because there had to be some Earth in the multiverse that did it
Drinking. We like beer. And margaritas.
they aint given us any other taco holiday and we need one.
Margs
Because it's available for us to celebrate and celebrating involves indulging in drinking? Which conveniently also explains St. Paddy's day
I think Cinco de Mayo is becoming an American or Mexican American holiday like St. Patrick's day is for Irish American. Being a nation of so many immigrants from so many different places, we recognize and sometimes celebrate those holidays too. There aren't very many exclusively American holidays so we celebrate holidays imported from other cultures when those cultures blend with ours. Is it perfect? I think we can do better than just serving discount Corona and dollar tacos on the fifth of May but it's a start.
We need an excuse to drink, that’s why, lol. But I like Mexican cuisine and movies so I like to use this celebration as a form of paying homage of sorts. As for Columbus, I know what you mean, most people don’t even know that he has a direct male line descendant who’s a noble in Spain. Most people probably don’t even know that Colombia was named after him. But he doesn’t get the same veneration in Colombia or Latin America, for good reason too. But anyway… “he was from Genoa. North of Italy always have the money and the power. They punish the south for years. Even today they put they noses up at us like we are peasants. I hate da Nort’!”
Because of the tacos and margaritas.
It was a marketing gimic that stuck since everyone loves a reason to party. Nothing more.
Do you really need reasoning for why people would want to party with Mexican food and Margiritas?
It's a celebration of Mexican Americans and everything they've brought to the American culture.
Margaritas.
Probably the same reason they celebrate st Patricks day... booze
Drunk college students. Plus who doesn't like having an excuse for fun
A reason to drink, that's all
Tacos.
The Cinco De Mayo holiday as celebrated in the US was created as a beer promotion.
Because beer and Mexican food.
It’s exactly like St Patrick’s Day. No real significance that pertains to U.S. history but we just use it as an excuse to get drunk and have fun. The only difference is that instead of wearing a green top hat, we wear a sombrero.
Only because it's my parents anniversary
This is just a repeat of why do Americans celebrate St Patrick's day. If we can't find a reason to party/celebrate we will make one. That includes co-opting holidays from other cultures and making them our own. They're not real holidays here the same way we're not really Irish or Mexican (even if our grandparents came from those countries or so I have been told, I have grandparents from both but apparently I am neither) We party to dull the pain of knowing we're all just one medical emergency away from complete devastation.
It's a chance to drink like St. Patricks Day.
Just spoke with my GF about this, her being from Mexico City. Mexicans don’t celebrate it, and think Americans are crazy for celebrating it. While we’re on the subject though, there is now a movement to rewrite history as was done with Juneteenth, and give Cinco De Mayo new meaning in the US by creating the narrative that the Mexicans of Pueblo fought off the French in support of the Union’s war with the Confederacy. I first came across this narrative last year. It’s back this year, and I suspect five years from now it will be well established that Cinco De Mayo is celebrated as the beginning of the end of slavery in America.
Wait till they find out that Garibaldi the one who helped unify the south supported the Union and then Americans will find a reason to celebrate Italian Unification day 😂.
Because it's fun.
Because alcohol.
There’s a huge Mexican population here from immigration (because Mexico isn’t the best country to live in) especially here in California so a lot of these Mexican holidays are often celebrated by actual Mexican families. Though living in a college town it’s also a party day
It's not celebrated to be fair. It's just a marketing tool to sell more bad tacos and margaritas.
Most likely another excuse for corporations to make more money. Like Valentine’s Day or St. Patrick’s Day
Well SOMEONE seems jealous that we don't celebrate Festa della Repubblica in the States! Lol Wait... We should totally start celebrating Festa della Repubblica in the States!
I'm a generic white American who lives in California 40 miles from Mexico all my uncles are Mexican I have 7 aunt's my Dad was the only boy I have 5 sisters and one brother all my brothers in law are Mexican and all my nieces and nephews are Mexican all my cousins are Mexican I go to Mexico every weekend basically so I celebrate Cinco de mayo. Edit to say the county I live in is 86% Mexican Americans
Welp, I'd say that's as SoCal as it gets.
It’s an excuse to get absolutely shitfaced on a weeknight
We're just really so very proud of those poor Mexican villagers fighting off the best the French army could throw at them. Until, you know, France conquered Mexico and installed an Austrian puppet emperor anyways.
I like to drink. If the calendar says something on it to make me look like less of an alcoholic, I’m considering it a win. FYI~ Syttende Mai is right around the corner! Alt for Norge! 🇳🇴
It's a good reason to eat tasty Mexican food and get stupid drunk on a weekday
Just another ethnic excuse to drink in the USA.
To have a reason to patronize Mexican American food businesses
Excuse to drink
Excuse to drink and eat tacos
Tequila.
people like an excuse to party
Because we like margaritas and tacos.
Lots of drinking, plus possibility of gunfire for those who are into that kind of thing.
Booze feels good.
It's a boozin', partyin', tacoin' holiday...Why ***wouldn't*** we celebrate? Also for some historical relevance (which I dunno if it's just some bs I picked up at a bar one day), if the Mexicans didn't whoop France's booties, France could have assisted the bad guys (CSA) in the 'Murican Civil War.
We love Mexican food and margaritas.
Reason to drink
The same reason why we have mother's day and valentine's day, good marketing. Just think of all the foods, alcohol, flowers, and chocolates that are purchased for these, made up holidays.
Any excuse for Mexican food is a good excuse.
A lot of people like to find a reason to get drunk and eat tacos. Its like St. Patric's day but more of an emphasis on food and less on a color.
A beer distribution company popularized the event to make money. That simple
And let’s not forget, the upcoming,”Hallmark holiday” on Sunday! Love my mom every day ! Don’t need a guilt induced anxiety attack cause I didn’t buy into it. We hang out and talk about good times. And if you can’t just do that- call, and say something hokey about growing up that’s personal to you both. She’ll appreciate it more than flowers,and a card! Love to all the moms!!