This past weekend for the first time in over three years, Celebrate Mexico Now resumed their in-person festival with Literacy Inc. at the forefront of this ground-breaking event.
We held free programs for families on Saturday in Washington Heights and Sunday in East Harlem, themed QUETZALCOATL: Aztec Tales, Legends, and Music, and they were a huge hit among attendees.
Storytelling and music are a huge part of Mexican culture and integral to our mission. Both comfort and affirm a child’s own cultural heritage and open up new worlds for them.
The Mariachi musicians of Escuela de Mariachi Angeles de Nueva York, a group of young people who started playing together since childhood, created a vivacious atmosphere for dancing and singing - a wonderful way to engage children and develop listening skills.
The talented multilingual Mexican storyteller Valentina Ortiz, a recipient of Mexico’s Ministry of culture grant, brought to life the legends of Quetzalcoatl, the Aztec god of wind and rain and the creator of humanity. The custom of storytelling, like music, is both a conveyer of tradition and a skill-builder, developing a child’s capacity to listen and grow, important skills to achieving reading proficiency.
The crowd cheered as Senator Robert Jackson and Assemblymember Manny de los Santos awarded East Harlem resident Isabel Navarro, a staunch advocate for Mexican immigrants and fierce trailblazer in children’s education, for 23 years of service to her community.
LINC is proud to have participated in Celebrate Mexico Now 2022, New York City’s premier Mexican arts festival, sharing Mexican culture, ancient traditions and new ideas. We were thrilled to be a part of Pix11's news coverage of the festival, which you can view here.
Thank you to our partners City’s First Readers, NYC Reads Initiative, Affinity by Molina Healthcare, Alianza Dominicana Cultural Center, El Barrio, Manhattan Borough President’s office and Celebrate Mexico Now. We hope to see you next year!
For the latest LINC literacy programs, please visit us at www.lincnyc.org/onlineprograms.
