Dia de Los Muertos, or Day of The Dead, is a tradition celebrated during the first two days of November. It is a traditional holiday when people celebrate their deceased loved ones. There is no wrong or right way to celebrate this holiday; but there are common ways used to celebrate, such as colorful altars decorated with colorful flowers and items that the deceased cared about.
Bernice Guzman and Raquel Lara both teach the Mexican American Heritage class here at Dinuba High School. This is an ethnic studies course which, as the name would imply, discusses the history between Mexico and America, as well as Mexican culture and the way it interacts with American culture. Every year it has its students build altars to whomever they’d like: whether it be family members, celebrities, or icons; the only requirement being to pay respects to the subject of the altar.
The Project
The project of making altars, or in Spanish, ofrendas (“offering”), wasn’t part of the original curriculum of the Mexican American Heritage class. It was added later on by Mrs. Guzman. Over the years, the ofrendas got bigger and more creative in their designs. “I am very proud of my students for keeping the tradition alive” Mrs. Guzman said about her students’ projects. The ofrenda projects have grown over the years, some as small and simple as a shoe box, or big enough to use an entire table.
With each student putting their time, effort, and investment, no matter how big or small 
the ofrenda, they don’t do it just for a grade, but also for a prize. The students ofrendas are judged based on creativity such as bright colors, components such as candles, flowers, sugar skulls, trinkets, pictures, and lastly, if the group or individual was successfully able to represent who their ofrenda was about.
This Year’s Winners
This year’s first place winners are Maria Avilez, Guadalupe Garcia Guzman, and Miley Herrera. Their ofrenda honored famous Mexican musician, Vicente Hernandez. Vicente Hernandez was born February 17, 1940 and passed away December 12, 2021 at the age of 81. Hernandez was known for being a mariachi singer, actor and film director. They got a prize of $160 as a group, and was split evenly between the three students.
Second place was a junior (name withheld upon request) who dedicated their ofrenda to their grandfather and won a cash prize of $40, .
For third place this year was a junior who worked on the project all on her own. She earned a prize of $30. Her ofrenda was in honor of her Aunt Tona, who sadly passed away due to a complication in surgery in 2020. “I chose her because she was an important person to me,” the student, who wished to remain anonymous, said. Every morning Tona would start with a cup of coffee and her favorite snacks which were fried iguana, candy, nopal, grapes, and a bottle of coke.
Not a Disney Day
Ofrendas can be made by anyone and are not considered cultural appropriation against Mexicans, but it is wrong if you try to own the holiday by turning it into a product. In 2013, Disney attempted to trademark the traditional holiday. Latinos all across Latin America were furious. According to CNN news article “Day of the Dead trademark request draws backlash for Disney” by Cindy Y. Rodriguez. “Disney hoped to secure the rights to the title ‘Day of the Dead’ and such themed merchandise as fruit preserves, fruit-based snacks, toys, games, clothing, footwear, backpacks, clocks and jewelry.” Many signed a petition against Disney’s attempt to trademark the holiday, claiming it was cultural appropriation. After the severe backlash, Disney pulled back from attempting to trademark the holiday.
