Charro Days, also known as Charro Days Fiesta or Charro Days Festival, is a two-nation

fiesta ''Fiesta'' (Spanish for "religious feast", "festival", or "party") may refer to: Events *Fiesta San Antonio, a 10-day event held every April in San Antonio, Texas *St. Peter's Fiesta, a five-day festival in Gloucester, Massachusetts *Fiestas d ...

and an annual four-day pre-Lenten celebration held in Brownsville, Texas,

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

in cooperation with

Matamoros, Tamaulipas Matamoros, officially known as Heroica Matamoros, is a city in the northeastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, and the municipal seat of the homonymous municipality. It is on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from B ...

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

. The grito—a joyous Mexican shout—opens the festivities every year. This festival is a shared heritage celebration between the two border cities of Brownsville, Texas and

. The Charro Days festivals usually have about 50,000 attendees each year. This celebration includes the

Sombrero Festival Sombrero Festival, also known as Sombrero Fest, is a two-nation fiesta and an annual three-day pre-Lenten celebration held in Brownsville, Texas, United States. The grito—a joyous Mexican shout—opens the festivities every year. This festival ...

as well as a parade that goes down Elizabeth St. through Historic Downtown Brownsville, TX.

History

The festival was first organized and celebrated 1937 by the ''Brownsville Chamber of Commerce'' to recognize Mexican culture and honor the

charros Charro has several meanings, but it generally refers to Mexican horse riders, who maintain traditional dress, such as some form of sombrero, which in Mexican Spanish are called ''sombrero de charro'' (a charro's hat). The charros could also ...

, or the "dashing Mexican gentlemen cowboys." In addition, it is mentioned in the official webpage that the Charro Days festival was also created to bring people together during the effects of the Great Depression. Although not proven, it is rumored that the first “unofficial” Charro Days was realized in the early to mid-1800s, when people from the city of Brownsville, Texas, and

, just across the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio ...

, came together to celebrate a cooperative cultural festival to honor the two nations. The festival went on hiatus in 1942–45 & 2021.

Traditions

The four-day festival has daily parades, food stands and music, people dancing in the street, boat races, fireworks, bull fights, and a rodeo in Brownsville and in its sister city of Matamoros.

Costumes

Costumes reflecting Mexico's tradition have been used by those who partake in the occasion. Men, for the most part, wear traditional Mexican costumes—whether it is the charro costume or a cowboy one—while women wear the colorful Huipil costume. The traditional costume is often worn by adults, elders, and children on all four days to celebrate and honor borderland heroes.

Events

Mr. Amigo Association, an organization that works for the friendly relationship with

Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico Matamoros, officially known as Heroica Matamoros, is a city in the northeastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, and the municipal seat of the homonymous municipality. It is on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from B ...

and Brownsville, Texas, United States and to preserve the Charro Days and

celebrations, became a part of Charro Days in 1967. Sombrero Fest, a three-day ''Washington Park'' street party with food, popular rock, country and Tejano performers, was added in 1986. Moreover, it is worth mentioning that the first president of the Mr. Amigo Association was the former

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

Miguel Alemán Valdés Miguel Alemán Valdés (; 29 September 1900 – 14 May 1983) was a Mexican politician who served a full term as the President of Mexico from 1946 to 1952, the first civilian president after a string of revolutionary generals. His administr ...

. During the creation of

NAFTA The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA ; es, Tratado de Libre Comercio de América del Norte, TLCAN; french: Accord de libre-échange nord-américain, ALÉNA) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that crea ...

agreement in 1988-1989, Congressman

Solomon Ortiz Solomon Porfirio Ortiz (born June 3, 1937) is an American former politician who served as the U.S. representative for , based in Corpus Christi, serving from 1983 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. In 2010, Ortiz was narrowly d ...

presented the Mr. Amigo Association with the Mr. Amigo Review Award for the distinction of being one of the first organizations to extend friendship and mutual understanding between the

and

. The Mr. Amigo Review Award remains on exhibit at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...

in Washington, D.C. as a model of bi-national friendliness between these two countries.

References

External links