Washington’s vibrant Latino community has deep roots in the district. In the district, a city known for its political activism and cultural diversity, Hispanic and Latino residents make up just over 11% of the district’s total population, according to 2023 Data USA statistics.
The district’s Latino community is fast growing, with a 28% increase in 2020, according to the “About Us” page of Fiesta DC’s website. Fiesta DC is an annual festival that aims to preserve and promote the city’s Latino heritage.
Patricia Corrales, president of Fiesta DC since 2012, said the festival brings important tourism to the city and honors the Latino community’s enduring presence in Washington.
“The Hispanic community, along with any other community, we’re resilient,” Corrales said.
Fiesta DC began in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood in the 1970s, and has only grown since. Now, it is the largest Latino festival in the Washington Metropolitan Area and is held downtown each September, according to the festival’s website.
“We’ve been a long-standing community here,” Corrales said. “We value the city. We value where we call home, and that’s what we are fighting for in terms of our own families, to have employment, to be able to live, I should say, with decency.”
Corrales said showcasing culture is key to maintaining traditions and passing down values to the next generation.
“Now it’s like all the restrictions that we had is evidence of people just feeling a little bit anxious, but they were able to come out and show their culture because this is tradition for our kids,” Corrales said. “Our kids need to know where they’re coming from.”
Since President Donald Trump’s November 2024 election, his administration’s focus on mass deportations has sparked significant fear and anger among Latino communities nationwide, according to an Oct. 24 PBS news article.
From celebrations of culture and identity to protests, this is how the district’s Latino community has remained resilient.
Edited by Will Sytsma, Stevie Rosenfeld, Kyle Galvin, Ben Austin, Caleb Ogilvie and Kalie Walker.
