Well before a six-piece mariachi band could launch its first spirited number Friday evening in downtown Columbus, an expanded Festiva Latina already looked to be a success.
An estimated 500 people already began crowding Fourth Street just 45 minutes into the free, cultural bridge-building event, even as local and other officials issued a welcome in English and Spanish.
Fittingly, the weather seemed south of the border — sunny and hot with temperatures in the low 80s — enough for local Latino women to cool themselves with floral Spanish folding fans.
Thomas and Olga Alaplic ate quesadillas near the corner of Fourth and Washington streets and watched the crowd grow.
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“Columbus is becoming so good at embracing all cultures — Mexican, Indian, Chinese, and the others,” Thomas Alaplic said. “And when you have this type of festival, it encourages us to learn about other people. And when you have a multicultural and very diverse community, then I think it has to be a stronger one.”
The fourth annual gathering, which originally began as a celebration of Mexican Independence Day, also marked today’s 50th annual observance of National Hispanic Heritage Month, according to organizers. The local Latino Education Group and Su Casa Columbus organized the celebration.
John Stroh, chairman of the Columbus Human Rights Commission, and Jorge Sanchez Cataño, representing the Mexican consulate in Indianapolis, welcomed the crowd.
Stroh heralded the importance of diversity to make the city vibrant — one whose population is 5.7 percent Latino, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures. Cataño mentioned that the Latino population in Indiana had grown exponentially since the mid-1990s.
The consulate closed his remarks by waving the Mexican flag and shouting “Viva Mexico!” as onlookers of various backgrounds cheered and enthusiastically repeated his words.
Nicola Dickinson, in Columbus for a decade after moving here from England, was visiting the event for the first time with grandchildren and a friend’s children. They were perusing a booth of Mexican clothing and jewelry when Dickinson mentioned that the idea for the festival seemed to be a good one.
“I really like these events of diversity, where people can simply get a little look at others’ culture,” she said. “I think that can break down barriers.”
That’s part of the very idea of Festiva Latina, according to Luz Elena Michel, one of the organizers.
“I’m very happy to see everyone really enjoying this event — and to see more and more people here,” Michel said. “This is such a good opportunity for us to share our traditions and our culture with the entire city.”
During the early portion of the event, young dancers in traditional Mexican dress from Columbus’ Ballet Folklorico entertained to recorded music. One teen dancer pulled a family member from the crowd to move to a samba-style beat.
