Cinco de Mayo festivities swelled through the heart of downtown Los Angeles as the city’s diverse population came together to celebrate Mexican heritage and culture. The day commemorates the victory of the poorly-equipped Mexican army over French forces in a fight to drive the Europeans out of the country at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. Cinco de Mayo draws crowds in Mexican-American neighborhoods as the date also notes the start of freedom and democracy at the beginning of the American Civil War. This year, people came from all around to take in the sights and sounds of Olvera Street in downtown Los Angeles, as history continued to be made. (Photos courtesy of Genevieve Smith).
A man celebrates Mexican culture as he ruffles through souvenirs from Olvera Street.
This father shares Cinco de Mayo festivities with his child, who is exposed to the rich Mexican culture thriving in the marketplace of the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historic Monument.
A boy celebrates Cinco de Mayo with a new marionette puppet as mariachi music plays through the Olvera street marketplace.