Aggies celebrate Dia De Los Muertos with procession around campus

Friday marked the end of the Dia De Los Muertos festival that celebrates the remembrance of family members who have journeyed into the next life.

Coming from ancient Aztec rituals, Dia De Los Muertos is celebrated in Mexico and other parts of Latin America as well as in many places around the world, including Cache Valley.

 The Utah State University Latinx Creative Society hosted their fourth annual Dia De Los Muertos procession, with a march on Thursday down mainstreet Logan and another on Friday around the USU campus.

 Associate professor of Latinx Urban Literature, Crescencio Lopez Gonzalez said the Latinx community in Cache Valley generally celebrates their cultural heritage in the privacy of their own home, unlike their countries of origin, and he wants to change that.

 “My goal is to empower the community in public settings,” Gonzalez said. “I want to advocate the notion that Latinx culture is intrinsically valuable to the growth of our community.”

 In the fall of 2015, five USU Latinx undergraduate students created the Latinx Creative Society with Gonzalez to help document Latinx experiences in Cache County through literary and media arts.

 “Since 2015, we have become aware of the issues affecting our community and we strategize about how we can positively affect change,” Gonzalez said.

 Folklore student Nelda Ault-Dyslin said Day of the Dead isn’t part of her heritage but her mother is from an island that was conquered by the Spanish, so she is discovering parts of her past now.

 “I just love traditions that remind you to remember, especially about people who have gone before. It’s not my family’s tradition but I’m celebrating it now because I share a little bit of a colonized story,” Ault-Dyslin said.

 Ault-Dyslin shared why she thinks culture and folklore are important.

 “I feel like a lot of the problems we run into is that people don’t understand each other and the beautiful thing about folklore is that it helps to connect one another and understand each other. Some may think, ‘oh, we don’t celebrate Day of the Dead but we do celebrate Memorial day’ and this is why we do it, so we can pass along those stories.”

 The procession on campus began with a blessing by Lizette Cruz, a Latinx Creative Society club member. Traditional songs such as “De Colores” and “Cielito Lindo” were played as the procession walked through campus. Students were encouraged to come dressed up with flowers and sugar skull faces, which are symbolic to the holiday. The most notable figures of La Catrina and the Catrin lead the procession. La Catrina is the lady of death and her husband was a wealthy man who met his demise.

USU student Jared Hart said everything he knew about Dia De Los Muertos came from movies such as “The Book of Life” and “Coco.” He was surprised to see a celebration on campus between his classes.

 “It’s just really cool that there is that representation of history and culture and that people are invited to walk side by side in remembrance of the dead,” he said. “That’s really great.”

 Along with the processions a special event will be happening on Friday called Noche Cultural in the Taggart Student Center at 6:30 p.m. The event is a celebration of Latinx culture.

 “Growing up in Mexico, my mother took me every year to visit our dead. She also created an altar to welcome our departed. These are memories that I am now sharing with my family and my community here in Cache Valley,” Gonzalez said. “Every year, we look forward to Day of the Dead procession because it is an opportunity to honor our dead, our cultural heritage and empower our community at the same time. We invite everyone in the community to embrace their cultural heritage and share it with all of us.”

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@GrahamWoodMedia