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Kids & Family

Mexican Independence Day Cause for a Party in the Plaza

There will be a ceremony from 4 to 6 on Sunday, with Mayor Pro-Tem Ken Brown and the Consulate of Mexico of San Francisco in attendance to celebrate Mexican Independence Day.

The party may be on , but the real Mexican Independence Day is El Dieciseis de Septiembre - September 16 to the rest of us. That's this Sunday.

a local celebration will be held in the Sonoma Plaza between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., with music, food, music and other entertainments from Sonoma Valley's Nuestra Voz.

Throughout the day all kinds of antojitos Mexianos will be available, such as tamales, tostados, tacos, etc., No beer or wine will be served, but more family-oriented fare such as sodas, lemonade and horchata.

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There will be lively entertainment all day long, including the Aztec Dancers Ohtli Yoliliztli, (1:00 - 1:45), folkloric dancers from Woodland Star Charter School (starting at 2 p.m.), and the Quetzalen Folklorico (from 3 - 4 p.m.).

This is the third year that Nuestra Voz will have organized the celebration, though the holiday has been recognized in Sonoma for about 15 years. It's estimated that over a third of Sonoma's residents are Latino, and organizers anticipate up to 3,000 people will attend.

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There will be a civic ceremony from 4 to 6, with Mayor Pro-Tem Ken Brown as well as Marimar Suarez, a cultural attache from the Consulate of Mexico of San Francisco.

The date of Sept. 16 is recognized in Mexico as El Grito de Independica, the "cry" for independence from Spanish oppression first raised by Fr. Miguel Hidalgo in the town of Dolores, Guanajuano, in 1810. The Mexican War of Independence lasted over a decade, culminating on Sept. 27 1821.

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