WORCESTER, Mass. — The long-awaited return of the Latin American Festival drew thousands of people outside City Hall Saturday for a celebration of culture and unity.
It has been almost three years since the last festival was celebrated in person, as the previous year was held remotely.
The grand return also marks the festival’s 30th anniversary, and everything from the booming music to the aroma of Latin cuisine is a showcase of cultural pride.
“It’s great to share culture, to share different types of food,” Vasthy Diaz said. “We see different people come to these festivals as well, not just Latinos, so it’s really interesting to see how different cultures and foods have impacted other lives.”
Diaz and her family have made it an annual tradition to open up shop at the festival, and Grandma’s cooking keeps things busy with a steady line of customers stopping by.
“My grandmother, she’s an expert I would say when it comes to cooking,” Diaz said. “She is from the Dominican Republic and has lived here in Worcester for over 20 years. To come back and be surrounded by Latin Americans and other cultures, it’s great.”
And where there’s Latin music, there’s always an opportunity to dance. Kristian Santos and his staff at Tumbao Latin Dance were there to help.
“It’s called the Latin American Festival for a reason. We have everyone coming out,” Santos said. “I believe over 15,000 people come in and I’ve been here for the last five years setting up a table and attending. We are actually performing and teaching a class. Centro Las America does a great, great job putting this event together.”
Although the festival had to take a multi-year hiatus due to the pandemic, CENTRO president and CEO Juan A. Gomez said it was very easy to get back into motion.
“This is like a bicycle. You leave a bike for a while and then you pick it up and it’s like you never forgot it! Throughout the 30-year legacy of this festival, it gets better every year, it gets bigger every year, and it’s also helping to bring out a positive image of the Latino community in Central Massachusetts and New England,” he said.
CENTRO, formerly Centro Las Americas, is the largest minority-led, community-based nonprofit organization in Central Massachusetts. Since 1992, the organization has taken the lead in planning the Latin American Festival.
