Editorial

The Real Reason Cinco De Mayo Is An American Holiday

ANALYSIS
Cinco de Mayo, David Franklin, Shutterstock

David Franklin/Shutterstock

Gage Klipper Commentary & Analysis Writer
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Although it started as a Mexican holiday, Cinco de Mayo is as American as apple pie. Normal Americans celebrate by guzzling margaritas, while the unhappy left grumbles about cultural appropriation. But Cinco de Mayo is more than just a party; it’s a nationalist rallying cry in a globalist world.

Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence Day, but it does celebrate Mexico’s national sovereignty. It commemorates Mexico’s underdog victory in the Battle of Puebla against the Second French Empire.

Benito Juarez was elected President of Mexico in 1861, but he was an outsider, atypical of the country’s ruling elite. He was born to a poor family in the rural state of Oaxaca and was orphaned as a child. Forced to work as a servant, he eventually put himself through law school. From there, he worked his way up to Governor of Oaxaca, then the President of Mexico’s Supreme Court and eventually, President of Mexico. But he inherited a mess.

When he took office, Mexico stood at the precipice of disaster, with decades of failed reforms and political instability leading to financial ruin. Mexico owed massive debts to England, Spain and France, and Juarez was forced to default. In response, the European powers sent their naval forces to collect what was due.

England and Spain negotiated a settlement, but France, under the rule of Napoleon III, saw an opportunity to carve out an empire in the Americas. By the end of the year, France had landed 6,000 troops at the port city of Veracruz, forcing Juarez and his army to retreat north. French forces then began the long march to Mexico City, the capital. But first they had to capture Puebla.

Puebla was a small city, but it was crucial for the French to establish supply lines to the capital. It also held symbolic significance. Having withstood previous invasion attempts during the Mexican-American war, it became a symbol of Mexican national resilience. Outnumbered and poorly equipped, Juarez mustered 2,000 men to defend the city as the French descended on the morning of May 5.

What happened next was nothing short of a miracle. The battle raged all day, as Juarez’s forces withstood the superior French artillery. By the evening, Juarez lost only about 85 troops, whereas the French lost five times that and were forced into retreat. It was a stunning underdog victory for the Mexican army and helped sustain morale for the next five years until the French and their puppet government were finally expelled for good.

It’s not hard to see why this would resonate with the American people. We have our own underdog story of a bunch of upstarts winning a national victory over European rulers, you may recall. But Cinco de Mayo is far less prominent in Mexico’s national consciousness. (RELATED: Mexican Officials Keep Meddling In Red States’ Efforts To Crack Down On Illegal Immigration)

While Juarez is remembered as a “preeminent symbol of Mexican nationalism and resistance to foreign intervention,” the holiday is primarily celebrated in the Puebla area. They hold military parades, battle re-enactments and other cultural festivities, but it is not a widely celebrated federal holiday. Mexicans don’t even get the day off of work.

On our side of the border, it’s more widely celebrated but with far less national character. It first entered America’s bloodstream in the 1960s, as leftist Chicano activists pushed for a more multicultural America. But it has long since become mainstream, with an ostensible celebration of Mexican culture leading to bottomless margarita brunches across the country. Americans might not get the day off, but we’re likely to call out the next morning.

So for the left, Cinco de Mayo is an American holiday because we commercialized and appropriated it. And to an extent, they’re right — but not for the reason they think. The symbolism of national resistance is as vital to our history as it is to Mexico’s, our own revolution having created a framework for the popular national sovereignty that defines the modern world today. If we’re going to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, we should at least take a minute to reflect on the lessons it holds. In fact, both Mexicans and Americans could use a reminder of the importance of their national sovereignty.

Today, we are both effectively post-national countries. Our shared border has been porous for decades, with virtually nothing to materially divide our two countries. This suits Mexico perfectly well, as their own citizens send remittances back to jog their economy, and Central Americans get to pass through without draining Mexico’s own social safety net. Our leaders are perfectly happy with this arrangement. It absolves their guilt complex around xenophobia and keeps wages low and corporations happy. Meanwhile, the drug cartels are increasingly supplanting the Mexican government as the dominant actors in the country, sending carnage our way as well. (RELATED: White House Forced Into Clean Up Duty After Biden Calls Critical Ally ‘Xenophobic’)

Leaders in both countries indulge in this fantasy of a borderless world because it suits them. But countries cannot survive long unless they value what makes them a nation. Failure to do so leaves us no different than if we had accepted French and British rule. We might not suffer under a foreign ruler, but popular sovereignty evaporates all the same.