CELEBRATION OF OUR LADY OF CANDELARIA

The Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Oaxaca is one of the most important areas of national biodiversity, between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean. Each year, in Juchitan, the center of the Zapotec ethnic group, located in this region, people look forward to La Vela, a festival in honor of the Virgin of La Candelaria. It’s a tradition celebrated for more than a century in the town of San Francisco Ixhuatan, a custom they have practiced for most of their lives. The istmeña women dress in their most antiques and elegant huipiles, an embroidered blouse with colorful flowers on velvet, and enaguas, a long skirt with white frills and starched lace. Although men also participate in the celebration, with hats and white costumes typical of the region, these festivities are for women. The division is notorious, the men remain almost apart, in their party, drinking, away from the center of the hall. After two decades of vetoing the muxes, participants of the gay community can also join the celebration, wearing the same attire as the ismeñas women. I spent three days in this beautiful celebration, of pre-Hispanic traditions, among parades of floats, in a world full of food, beer, and music, with these beautiful women, covered with gold necklaces, flowers, and velvet, where social classes also distinguished through the dresses.