By Dinah Alobeid
The altar in the Sacred Space Thursday boasted calacas and sugarskulls as well as Dos Equis beer, candles and incense. The skeleton was seated on the second tier of the altar adorned with purple and white decorations as well as ceiling adornments.
Calacas are skulls and Dos Equis beer is native to Mexico. These and the other aforementioned items are part of the longstanding Mexican and Aztec tradition celebrating the Day of the Dead.
The Latin American Student Organization (LASO) has been involved with different activities and events promoting and encompassing diversity among all the Northeastern community. With Halloween approaching, LASO decided to throw a different kind of ghoulish gathering and had a Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration in the Sacred Space Oct. 27.
The event was open to everybody and anybody who wanted to take part in a greater and deeper understanding of the Mexican holiday that falls on Nov. 1 and 2, near Halloween. On this date, observers celebrate death, a part of life in the Mexican and indigenous cultures.
The day recognizes all who have died. The other day, Nov. 2, celebrates the loss of young children and has a more somber feel to it, said Laurie Ortiz and Nayeli Vivanco, two LASO members who led the discussion about Dia de los Muertos.
“I don’t think we’ve [LASO] held Day of the Dead celebrations before, just talked about it,” said Ortiz, a middler biology major.
She explained the event is important for all students of NU.
“It is good to celebrate things that people would celebrate at home. It gives them a sense of comfort and everyone else the chance to learn about different cultures and traditions because a lot of Latinos don’t know about it [the holiday],” Ortiz said.
Dia de los Muertos was a ritual practiced hundreds of years ago in Mexico. The Spanish conquistadors considered it mocking of death, but according to members of LASO, the celebration is still very spiritual.
The Spaniards tried to Catholicize it by moving it to All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, when it is currently celebrated today.
“Unlike the Spaniards, who viewed death as the end of life, the natives viewed it as the continuation of life. Instead of fearing death, they embraced it. To them, life was a dream and only in death did they become truly awake,” explained the members of LASO.
The holiday is a melding of several different cultures, the Catholic Spanish and the Meso-American and Aztec cultures. The LASO event was a celebration to bring out different members of the NU community to recognize a different culture’s traditions and shed light on some of their own.
Sergio Marrero, president of LASO, said the event promoted diversity and the sharing, understanding and acceptance of different cultures, religions and traditions.
At the beginning of the event, which started at 6 p.m., the approximately 50 people in attendance were broken off into groups and discussed different holiday, religious or family traditions. The four groups began to joke and laugh as they discussed traditions from all parts of the world as well as the Spanish-speaking portion.
One freshman makes it a point to attend every LASO event.
“Every little thing, every time there is a community service event or anything, I’m there,” said Joelison Castillo, an accounting major.
A native of Bani, Dominican Republic, Castillo moved to Boston with his family when he was seven years old and said he joined LASO to relate to people. He said he enjoyed the Dia de los Muertos event.
“I enjoyed it a lot, learned a lot of new things,” he said. “I’m not really familiar with a lot of other Latino countries, and it was good for me to learn about their traditions as well as people from all over.”
Yaritza Betancourt, a new member of LASO, also attended the event.
“I started to go to LASO recently last month, but I really like the events,” said Betancourt, a sophomore theatre and psychology major. “The event was very informative on other cultures. I am Puerto Rican and I didn’t really know that Dia de Los Muertos was big in Mexico. We celebrate, but it’s more like remembering our loved ones that have passed away. ”
She also explained the differences in the traditions between Mexico and the Dominican Republic.
“Some people just take flowers to the grave and turn on candles in their homes, but it’s not as big,” Betancourt said.
