Cinco de Mayo again

[LARSSON at VAX1.Mankato.MSUS.EDU]

Joe wonders:
"Do they now celebrate the 4th of July in Mexico?
 
Are we going to be celebrating Bastille Day here in the US next year?
 
And why all of the use of it as a marketing ploy?
 
I suppose all of the above might make me sound like some sort of
xenophobic, jingoistic nutcase but, honest, I'm not; I just don't
understand how one moment you've never heard of the thing and the next
you're seeing it all over the place."


A few very important and basic reasons:
	1. the Hispanic (or Latino, if you prefer)-American population in
		the US is the fastest-growing ethnic group.  Granted that
		this includes Cuban-Americans and many others, the Mexican
		is a substantial portion of the whole;
	2. The Sunbelt states that abut Mexico--Texas, Arizona, New Mexico
		and California--are among the most important and/or
		fastest-growing population/economic centers in the US
	3. Realization of US cultural diversity has crept institutionally
		into many areas.  There is a small but important Hispanic
		population in Minnesota, one of the whitest states in	
		the country!
		And lots of other stuff gets celebrated.  At our school,
		where we have an Associate VP for Cultural Diversity,
		there are panels and celebrations for Cinco De Mayo bgut
		also for a host of Asian New Years (China, Cambodia, Laos,
		etc.) and lots of other stuff too!


Don Larsson, Mankato State U (MN)