Mexican Independence Day celebrations begin around the world

Mexican Independence Day festivities in Mexico and the United States started this weekend and run all week, celebrating Mexican independence from Spanish rule.

Get your sombreros, mariachis, and your Mexico flags ready because Mexican Independence Day is September 16 this year and parades and celebrations are planned from New York to LA, from Chicago to Phoenix, and from Minneapolis to Las Vegas. In Mexico, on September 16 the entire country celebrates the day when in 1810 Mexico gained its independence from Spain. On the night before, 'El Grito' - a dramatic re-enactment of the revolutionary Father Hidalgo's call to his fellow Mexicans to join the uprising - takes place in city halls throughout the country. Mexican flags are on display everywhere you go and celebrations will continue late into the night. On September 16, military parades are held in most Mexican cities. It is a time of great national pride and a celebration of Mexico's cultural identity during which food and spirited drink are an important part of the activities. In the United States it is a huge cultural celebration with parades, festivals, and lots of Mexican food and music across the nation. In Chicago they kicked it off a little early on Saturday for its large Mexican population with the Pilsen Mexican Independence Day Parade which marched on Newberry & 18th St. then West on 18th St. to Wolcott. In Phoenix, Consul General of Mexico Carlos Flores-Vizcarra and hundreds of thousands of families on Friday, Sept. 12 – Sunday, Sept. 14, will be attending the Fiestas Patrias celebration at the Barrios Unidos Park, 16th Street and Mohave. Minneapolis has huge parade planned for 199th Mexican Independence Day, Sunday 13 down Lake Street and 4th Ave South; they are expecting 20-25,000 attendees. In Las Vegas, the hotel-casinos don’t miss an opportunity to bring in guests to their facilities. The 19th Annual Las Vegas International Mariachi Festival will take place at the Paris Theatre at Paris Las Vegas with performances by Luchero, Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan and Mariachi Sol de Mexico de Jose Hernanez. One of the highlights is Luis Miguel performing live at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The Mexican singer known for his crooning ballads has been the recipient of several Latin Grammy and Grammy Awards. There is a host of other Mexican entertainers at casinos around the city all vying for patrons' pesos. A little history lesson on the celebration of the Mexican War of Independence (1810-1821) shows that the people of Mexico had an armed conflict which started on September 16, 1810 and was led by Mexican-born Spaniards, Mestizos, and Amerindians who where seeking their independence from Spanish rule. It started as an idealistic peasants’ rebellion and ended up as an alliance between liberals and conservatives according to Wikipedia. The war came to an end after years of mostly guerrilla warfare on September 27, 1821 when the Spanish signed the Treaty of Cordoba, which recognized Mexican independence under the terms of the ‘Plan of Iguala’. Check your local news outlets for celebrations honoring 199 years of Mexican Independence from Spain.