FREDERICK, Md.–Mariachi music and the smell from food trucks filled the brick-lined sidewalks here as a local group hosted its fourth annual Hispanic Heritage Festival — as scheduled.
Three entertainment groups had backed out just weeks before the event due to immigration concerns.
But after a year of planning, Centro Hispano de Frederick was determined to bring a taste of Hispanic culture to the city anyway.
“Throughout the planning, we took into consideration the safety and security of our community, which is what was most important to us,” said Suzanne Salichs, executive director of Centro Hispano de Frederick.
“That was a little bit of a scramble for us to find new entertainment but we respected those decisions and support them,” said Salichs.
She said she spoke to community stakeholders, public safety representatives and that her team and received overwhelming support to hold the event. They decided to go ahead with the event, held a couple of weeks ago.
Counties and cultural organizations around the state have cancelled or scaled back events around Hispanic Heritage Month for fear of being targeted by immigration enforcement. But some organizers still held the events that included safety measures for those concerned.
Event organizer Rosana Pedreañez said they had a back-up plan ready, she said in Spanish.
“I think it is a moment to be present and to remember our community in this great country that we bring our families and culture to,” said Pedreañez, owner of Risaa Events, the bilingual live entertainment company that helped coordinate the festival. “We come here to bring our beautiful and diverse and rich culture. We need to be recognized and seen in some way and we could not give up celebrating.”
Crowds moved through the dozens of vendors lining Carroll Creek Park, with people milling about in colorful traditional attire.
Maribel Gonzalez Rodriguez was one of the first vendors to sign up for the festival. Dressed in traditional attire, she was excited to share her Puerto Rican culture with the town.
“We are proud, we want to highlight the value of each culture and how important it is to support each other,” said Gonzalez Rodriguez, owner of Boricua Gift Shop in Frederick. “I am proud that we can have a voice for those who can’t have one right now and that are a target.”
Though they did recognize the fear and absence of some of their community members, festival organizers noted that the number of attendees did not drop this year.
“I think it shows strong representation that we are here and our voices get to be heard and that we are going to continue to celebrate our culture in the spirit of belonging and inclusion,” said Cynthia Serpas-Cathey, who attended the event with her family. “We will not be silenced.”