Next Thursday marks the beginning of Fiesta San Antonio, the 11-day celebration held nearly every year since 1891 to commemorate the Battle of San Jacinto and Texas’s victory against Mexico. The significance and meaning of Fiesta, though, differs for every San Antonian, and three Trinity faculty and staff shared their view and what students should look out for.

For Norma Elia Cantú, Murchison professor of humanities and professor of modern languages and literatures, the origins of Fiesta influence how she views the festival. She noted that people assume that it commemorates the Battle of the Alamo, rather than the Battle of San Jacinto and the defeat of the Mexican army under General Santa Anna. To her, Fiesta is a “phenomenon” from a scholarly point of view.

“Here, a very Mexican town is celebrating the defeat of Mexico, so to me, that’s kind of a conundrum,” Cantú said. “People don’t realize it’s a historical event they’re celebrating, much less one where they were defeated. They don’t identify with Mexico, especially now after all this time, but even early on.”

This conundrum that Cantú refers to is common in the conversation about Fiesta. Its complex history has caused discourse and even counter-fiestas, according to Cantú. Knowing the history of Fiesta is of the utmost importance for Cantú.

“I don’t think [Fiesta is racist]. I think racism is a very complex situation, and I guess elements of it are, but when you have the same people who are the oppressed — the objects of the racism — celebrating it, it tells me that it is a more complex relationship than just outright racism. Initially, yes,” Cantú said. “I think initially it was based on the desire to Americanize the population and to kind of rub it in their faces that they had lost the war.”

Alongside the meaning for Mexican-Americans, Fiesta plays a part in the history of other marginalized groups. Amy Stone, chair of the sociology and anthropology department, wrote a book on “Cornyation,” a satirical play about the royalty of Fiesta that originated in the 1950s. Stone explored the LGBTQ+ history behind the production, which included gay and lesbian designers since its debut and drag queens since the 90s. Though they don’t view every part of Fiesta as LGBTQ+ inclusive, when beginning their work on “Cornyation,” Stone found that “Cornyation” always included some form of gay artistry.
“It was really nice to see this kind of campy playfulness around really serious subjects. There’s a lot of making fun of San Antonio, making fun of Texas, making fun of politics. There’s like nothing they haven’t made fun of,” Stone said. “And everyone just having a really good time together. There’s something about what sociologists call that ‘collective effervescence’ — of everyone having a really good time together — that I think makes you feel more like a part of the city.”

Fiesta has a deep connection, controversial or otherwise, to marginalized groups in San Antonio, particularly in Mexican-American culture. However, that is not its only purpose.

“It fulfills another need that every community has, and that is to get together and celebrate a common either secular or liturgical event,” Cantú said.

This is exactly the reason why some San Antonians attend. For Stone, Fiesta was about long nights and having fun, and the same goes for Vincent Maldonado, senior academic coach, who has gone to Fiesta events almost every year for the past 30 years.

“Fiesta means to me community and getting together. I think it’s something that celebrates liveliness and people, you know,” Maldonado said. “It’s something that every San Antonian kind of looks forward to.”

Maldonado views Fiesta as a celebration of the heroes who died during Texas’s war for independence. Cantú sees it as a get-together with a complex and racist origin. Stone tries to uncover the queer aspects of the celebration. No matter how students judge it — or if and how they plan on attending — all three faculty and staff agreed that students should attend.

“Scholars always experience, learn, observe, analyze,” Cantú said. “Why not enjoy the festivity, but with awareness.”