# Why do Americans celebrate Cinco de Mayo? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 5, 2015, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309 "2015-05-05T12:45:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hershele\_Ostropoler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e47c2d/32.png) [@Hershele\_Ostropoler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hershele_Ostropoler)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/1 "2015-05-05T12:45:27Z")
¿Por que celebran los estadounidenses el Cinco de Mayo? More precisely, why is Cinco de Mayo celebrated by white people in the United States (not all white people, but enough that it’s visible), and other foreign national holidays generally aren’t (including Mexican Independence Day, Diez y Seis de Septiembre)? My girlfriend is partly of French descent, so we do it as a day of reconciliation, but that doesn’t seem to be the broader practice. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/2 "2015-05-05T12:50:56Z")
Tequila! ETA: just realized this is in GQ. Still, my answer stands. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/3 "2015-05-05T12:54:41Z")
According to Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > According to a paper published by the UCLA Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture about the origin of the observance of Cinco de Mayo in the United States, the modern American focus on that day first started in California in the 1860s in response to the resistance to French rule in Mexico. “Far up in the gold country town of Columbia (now Columbia State Park) Mexican miners were so overjoyed at the news that they spontaneously fired off rifles shots and fireworks, sang patriotic songs and made impromptu speeches.”[34] A 2007 UCLA Newsroom article notes that “The holiday, which has been celebrated in California continuously since 1863, is virtually ignored in Mexico.”[34] TIME magazine reports that “Cinco de Mayo started to come into vogue in 1940s America during the rise of the Chicano movement.”[25] The holiday crossed over from California into the rest of the United States in the 1950s and 1960s but did not gain popularity until the 1980s when marketers, especially beer companies, capitalized on the celebratory nature of the day and began to promote it.[35][36] It grew in popularity and evolved into a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage, first in areas with large Mexican-American populations, like Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and San Jose.[37] > > In a 1998 study in the Journal of American Culture it was reported that there were more than 120 official U.S. celebrations of Cinco de Mayo, and they could be found in 21 different states. An update in 2006 found that the number of official Cinco de Mayo events was 150 or more, according to José Alamillo, professor of ethnic studies at Washington State University in Pullman, who has studied the cultural impact of Cinco de Mayo north of the border.[38] > **[Cinco de Mayo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinco_de_Mayo)** > > Cinco de Mayo (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}pronounced \[ˈsiŋko ðe ˈmaʝo\] in Mexico, Spanish for "Fifth of May") is an annual celebration held on May 5 to celebrate Mexico's victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza. Zaragoza died months after the battle from an ill Mor... So it’s a California thing, which isn’t surprising at all, to me. ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/4 "2015-05-05T12:56:40Z")
I suspect that is probably right. It’s an excuse to eat and drink. That’s probably why St. Patricks day is celebrated in the US too. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/5 "2015-05-05T13:01:59Z")
Significantly, today’s Google Doodle isn’t about Cinco de Mayo at all – it celebrates Nellie Bly’s 151st birthday. ---
**Author:** ![spifflog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@spifflog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spifflog)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/6 "2015-05-05T13:14:40Z")
And excuse to party. See: St Patrick’s Day Ninja’d!~!!! ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/7 "2015-05-05T13:25:21Z")
Mexican Bulldogs tonight! ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/8 "2015-05-05T13:28:00Z")
Once the bar industry found out about it, it grew exponentially in the US. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/9 "2015-05-05T13:32:27Z")
Add to the above the marketing effort behind it particularly Mexican restaurants & beer distributors really pushed this to be a day to cut loose and celebrate, and really presented it as a fun holiday (staying clear of it’s roots) ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/10 "2015-05-05T13:41:23Z")
There are a lot of Mexicans in America. And it’s a great excuse to drink a margarita. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/11 "2015-05-05T13:45:53Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Once the bar industry found out about it, it grew exponentially in the US. Only 193 shopping days until Genghis Khan’s birthday. Ferment some horse milk and get in on the ground floor today! ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/12 "2015-05-05T13:50:30Z")
The answer to this has already been cited: St. Patrick’s Day. If you have a large enough ethnic group with a day you can drink and eat one, you’ll have a holiday. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/13 "2015-05-05T13:52:40Z")
> [@tanstaafl](#): > > I suspect that is probably right. It’s an excuse to eat and drink. That’s probably why St. Patricks day is celebrated in the US too. In Buffalo, even non-Polish people celebrate Dyngus Day. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/14 "2015-05-05T14:21:25Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > In Buffalo, even non-Polish people celebrate Dyngus Day. Ummm, did the Polish name it that as a whoosh? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/15 "2015-05-05T14:23:42Z")
Drinking, I’m sure plays into it, but a lot (most?) people like Mexican food as well. On top of that, bordering Mexico, there’s a lot of Mexican culture in the states. I would guess that most major cities have at least one area that’s mainly Hispanic/Mexican. In the last 10-15 years Cinco de Mayo celebrations have spilled outward and given more people another reason to go out for Mexican food and margaritas. I don’t think it’s anything more than that. I’d be willing to bet that at least half of the white people you’d see out tonight couldn’t tell you what Cinco de Mayo is. Some of them probably can’t even translate. Yesterday, I heard one person try to make a joke and call it Quatro de Cinco (aiming for Quatro de Mayo). TL;DR, it’s just a reason to go out for drinks like St Patrick’s it a night to go and get green beer. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/16 "2015-05-05T14:29:24Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > According to Wikipedia: > > [Cinco de Mayo - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinco_de_Mayo) > > So it’s a California thing, which isn’t surprising at all, to me. This makes a lot of sense. I moved out to CA in the 70s, and had no idea what Mexican food was since we just didn’t have it on the East Coast. But that changed in the 80s as Mexican food and beers became popular throughout the US (even if just from crappy chain restaurants). ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/17 "2015-05-05T14:38:28Z")
Because Mexican food is yummy and it’s an excuse to drink. ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/18 "2015-05-05T14:42:22Z")
Here’s a useful list: > **[National Holidays Around the World](https://www.infoplease.com/culture-entertainment/holidays/national-holidays-around-world)** > > The following table lists the date and name for select national holidays in countries around the world. Find the day, month, and year of inception for independence, revolution, flag, and founding days of more than 100 nations. Coming up: Constitution Day in the Federated States of Micronesia (May 10) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/19 "2015-05-05T14:44:34Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > Ummm, did the Polish name it that as a whoosh? It’s Śmigus-Dyngus in Polish. Story behind it and the name [here](http://culture.polishsite.us/articles/art31fr.htm). ---
**Author:** ![HipGnosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/76d3ee/32.png) [@HipGnosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HipGnosis)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2015, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309/20 "2015-05-05T14:46:48Z")
Corona (beer Co.) made it a holiday in America; > **[How Corona Made Cinco De Mayo An American Holiday](https://vinepair.com/wine-blog/how-corona-made-cinco-de-mayo-an-american-holiday/)** > > Cinco De Mayo was originally intended to connect Mexican Americans to U.S. history, but it's evolved into a major drinking event. Here's how that happened. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-americans-celebrate-cinco-de-mayo/719309.md?page=2)