Let's Get Something Straight About What Cinco de Mayo Is NOT

By Fusion Staff  |  May 5, 2014 | 2:12pm
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The fifth of May, or “Cinco de Mayo” as it is known in the United States, signifies the anniversary of an unlikely Mexican victory over the French in the 1862 Battle of Puebla.

While this victory is still celebrated in the Puebla region of Mexico as “El Día de la Batalla de Puebla,” Cinco De Mayo in America is its own thing—an outgrowth of Mexican-American sentiment during the American Civil War, a marketing opportunity for Mexican beer companies—a catch-all excuse to celebrate Mexican heritage.

But it is definitely not Mexican Independence Day, which is celebrated in September.

Andy is a graphics editor and cartoonist at Fusion.

 
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