Cinco de Mayo

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Cinco de Mayo, or the fifth of May, is a holiday that celebrates the date of the Mexican army’s May 5, 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. The day, which falls on Thursday, May 5 in 2022, is also known as Battle of Puebla Day. While it is a relatively minor holiday in Mexico, in the United States, Cinco de Mayo has evolved into a commemoration of Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in areas with large Mexican-American populations.

Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence Day, a popular misconception. Instead, it commemorates a single battle. Although not a major strategic win in the overall war against the French, Zaragoza’s success at the Battle of Puebla on May 5 represented a great symbolic victory for the Mexican government and bolstered the resistance movement. In 1867—thanks in part to military support and political pressure from the United States, which was finally in a position to aid its besieged neighbor after the end of the Civil War—France finally withdrew.

These days, Mexico sits on top of the beer world. The country accounts for 30% of all global beer exports and ships more than double the amount of beer as any other country, according to Trade Data Monitor. The vast majority of those brews head north of the border: The US is the destination for 97% of Mexican beer exports.

In the United States, Cinco de Mayo is widely interpreted as a celebration of Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in areas with substantial Mexican-American populations and a big party day with lots of drinking and eating .

If you decide to partake in the festivities be smart ,about a third of all U.S. auto crashes that happen on Cinco de Mayo have historically involved a drunken driver, according to federal traffic data, but the leader of Mothers Against Drunk Driving said revelers can avoid tragedy by taking precautions. Alex Otte, MADD national president, urged anyone planning to celebrate the day with alcohol to make a plan for how they will get home before they begin indulging.