New festival celebrates the richness of Northside cultures
Yani DeLeon and Rosalinda Menedez performed a Peruvian dance during Around the World on Lowry on Aug. 3.
Story by Angeline Patrick Pacheco, North News Intern
Photos by Christine Nguyen, North News Intern
In the parking lot of the new Colonial Market, a celebration of the diverse cultures and backgrounds in North Minneapolis took place, featuring music and dance performances, games, art, and cuisine from all over the world.
The Aug. 3 event, Around the World on Lowry, was made possible through the collaboration of Nuestra Luche and the Northside School of Music, with a grant from the Cultural District Arts Fund.
Viviana Salazar, executive director of Nuestra Luche, said, “The goal of the event is to showcase all the diversity here…We wanna make sure everyone is represented.”
They had applied for a grant earlier in the year and began putting the event together shortly after receiving the award.
Salazar stated that it wasn’t hard to bring the neighborhood together to make the celebration happen, though.
“Everybody is from the community,” she said. “I mean, the Colonial Market allowed us to use this space… a neighbor of mine rented the tents, and all the dancers, I just reached out to them and they were willing to come.
“North Minneapolis is built of so many beautiful cultures, and I love that the community came together to help put this together.”
Participants enjoyed the abundance and variety of food presented on the warm afternoon, which included platanos fritos, egg rolls, empanadas, chicharon preparado, and more.
People enjoyed the chicharrons made by Yenisse Chipols at her stall, Raspados Meriyei.
The performances were equally varied, as they included Mexican and Nicaraguan folklorico dancing, African drumming, and Peruvian dancing with eye-catching outfits and headdresses.
A Nicaraguan folklorico performance was particularly sweet. The star was a young girl dancing in a dress she had made throughout the entire performance.
“It makes me very happy that she loves the music of my country,” said Auralila Moreno, the mother of the young dancer, Auhary Moreno. “At home, she’s always dancing too.” Auhary has performed in her home country of Nicaragua before, and the crowd was delighted to watch her bring it to the Northside.
“Im very proud of being able to share the culture, especially with my own kids, because they are growing up here and they are forgetting the Spanish language,” said a dance instructor with Nuestra Luche, Rosalinda Mendez. “When my kids see me doing this, they get more curious about asking questions of our culture.”
State Sen. Bobby Joe Champion, who was present throughout the event, spoke to the importance of highlighting all the diversity in North Minneapolis.
“It’s important for us to work together so we have more events like this, of our individual cultures, where we can celebrate each other,” Champion said. “Because we are all a part of the human race.”
Children excitedly played musical chairs together. Auhary Moreno, with sunglasses, claimed the last seat on this round.