The following is a letter to the editor in response to “Where are the U.S. Celebrations?” sent in by Jessica Smith and published in the May 8 edition of the Record-Bee.
I want to offer a different perspective on the celebration of Cinco de Mayo at a local elementary school. A complete education necessarily includes diversity and an appreciation of other cultures, including language, food and dance. We live in a relatively non-diverse community and the Cinco de Mayo event was an excellent opportunity to provide the students with knowledge and appreciation of a culture that is rich in history, close in proximity and directly relevant to the history of our own state.
The children at the Cinco de Mayo event played together, danced together, ate together and had no issues with skin color or national origin. As for the allegation that the Cinco de Mayo event displaces more American holidays, I was with the children when they watched a movie about Martin Luther King, Jr. I saw them make holiday crafts in December and Valentine”s Day crafts in February.
The same children paraded around the school in their Halloween costumes in October and shared a feast in November while learning about the Pilgrims and the Native Americans. It is not the right time in their young lives to learn too much about war, sacrifice, mayhem and death. Give them a chance to be children and to learn unity, peace and love.
Angela Carter
Middletown
