PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — An annual Mexican celebration that takes place each year in South Philadelphia has been canceled due to fears of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
El Carnaval de Puebla is one of the city’s biggest annual celebrations of Mexican culture and history. It celebrates Mexico’s victory over French occupiers in 1862 at the Battle of Puebla.
The event was scheduled for April 27, but there will be no dancers or Mexican bands wearing bright colors and smiles down Washington Avenue this year as the festival has been canceled. Organizers say it’s in the best interest of the community, as many live under the fear of ICE officers carrying out President Trump's aggressive deportation directives.
“We don't want to take a risk and celebrate something we do every year, and if we don't want to cancel and people get in trouble, I don't think we’re going to feel good about ourselves if we do that,” said Dionicio Jimenez, vice president of San Mateo Carnavalero in Philadelphia, which helps to organize El Carnaval de Puebla.
According to Visit Philadelphia, the event draws close to 15,000 people each year. It has been a staple in the city for 17 years, with only one other cancellation in 2017, during the first Trump administration. Jimenez said many come from across the country by the bus loads.
“This carnival involves people coming from other states, other cities. This implies a lot of expenses, because we bring musicians from Mexico,” he explained. “Two bands come from Mexico, and then we are not going to do that.”
He said the community remains in fear, but the most difficult issue is explaining the cancellation to the children who look forward to the carnival each year.
“A lot of our kids, they don't know if relatives, their friends' parents, are legal or illegal here,” said Jimenez, “so they want to celebrate, but we explain to them. We say, ‘Listen, this is why we want to cancel.’”