The smell of tamales floated through the air as students, faculty and community members walked through the multi-colored entrance to Hamline Unidos’ Dia de los Muertos celebration. Orange marigolds, scattered throughout Anderson center, led across an open dance floor towards decorated tables. As soon as the mariachi band began playing, the celebration for the Day of the Dead began.
Nov. 1 is marked as the day in which Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is celebrated. Dia de los Muertos originated in Mexico, although it is celebrated in many Spanish-speaking countries, including countries in Latin America and Spain. The celebration of Dia de los Muertos can look different for every family, but there are some traditions that are central to the holiday — the ofrenda being one of them.
“During this time, [people] set up altars. They go to cemeteries or from their homes and they set up altars. They set up candles, water and drinks. It’s in hopes of bringing loved ones back and not forgetting them,”one of the presidents of Hamline Unidos, Katy Moreno Lopez, said. Lopez also told the story of the Catrina, the skulls that have become an icon of the Day of the Dead.
“[The Catrina] was actually a rebellion from a certain woman who did not want to be Mexican,” Lopez said. “European women were so different from what Mexican women look like, so one Mexican woman decided to be a rebel and painted her face as a skull because she did not want to be Mexican.”
The Day of the Dead celebration wasn’t all fun and games. Behind the ofrenda sat a 25-foot wide, 10-foot high wall art piece to recognize those who have passed trying to cross the U.S-Mexico border. Along the bottom of the wall runs a black line representing the border between Mexico and Arizona. Manila and orange colored toe tags were pinned across the wall, marking where people trying to cross into the U.S. had passed away. Manila tags represent people who have successfully been identified. Orange tags represent unidentified human remains. The exhibition stood in remembrance alongside the ofrenda, letting students, faculty and community members reflect, celebrate and remember those they have lost.
Although the Day of the Dead is celebrated far and wide, it was not always present on campus at this scale.
“I always celebrated Dia de los Muertos in my class, but not as an event for the whole university,” said Maria Leal, professor of Spanish and the advisor for Hamline Unidos. “I’ve been here for 16 years and never had an event like this.”
Hamline Unidos is a student organization on campus that aims to support and empower those in the Hispanic and Latinx communities. They focus on projects and events relating to a number of issues, including education, health, immigration and economic aid. Hamline Unidos had put on a large-scale celebration of Dia de los Muertos in 2022, but had kept celebrations to a more intimate size in years before. It wasn’t for lack of trying to make the Day of the Dead a campus-wide celebration, but more so that interest in the culture and language has dwindled in recent years.
“I think that a common [problem] is that the study of a language or the study of another culture is not essential [on Hamline’s campus]. Because at Hamline, [language learning] is not a requirement,” said Leal, explaining why Hamline and Hamline Unidos might not have hosted a public celebration of Dia de los Muertos.
That isn’t stopping Hamline Unidos from celebrating their culture and making sure that students who celebrate have the space to do so.
“Most of the Latinos that are in college now are probably from immigrant parents. We don’t really see much of our traditions being shown, so it’s important to keep the traditions with those families alive.” Fernanda Pinon Martinez, another president of Hamline Unidos said.
The night went off without a hitch, with dancers and other performers gracing the mass of people who came to join in the festivities. It was a night of remembrance that will certainly be remembered. To learn more about Hamline Unidos and to get involved, visit hamline.presence.io/organization/hamline-unidos.