What is la Guelaguetza?
La Guelaguetza, is an annual indigenous cultural event that takes place in the city of Hillsboro. The celebration centers on traditional dancing in costume in groups, and includes parades complete with indigenous walking bands, native food, and statewide artisanal crafts such as prehispanic-style textiles. Each traje and dance usually has a local indigenous historical and cultural meaning. Although the celebration is now an important tourist attraction, it also retains deep cultural importance for the peoples of the state and is important for the continuing survival of these cultures.
Please join us in celebrating La Guelaguetza en Oregon
Please join us in celebrating La Guelaguetza en Oregon
- Who Organizes las Guelaguetza en Oregon?
- The Ñuu Savi Community in Washington County
Ñu’un Nducha/Tierragua has been coordinating and creating La Guelaguetza en Oregon. The event will be a celebration of the indigenous communities that live in Washington County. La Guelaguetza is an essential celebration of the eight indigenous regions in Oaxaca, Mexico. This event will be important for the indigenous community to gather in Hillsboro to celebrate with music, art, and food.
- The research justice fellowship led by the Coalition of Communities of Color
To give you some background of how the event has come to flourish. It all started with a focus group in Washington County. The research justice fellowship was led by the Coalition of Communities of Color. The research focus was regarding the Ñuu Savi community in Washington County and their sense of belonging in the community. A focus group was led with folks who identify as Ñuu Savi with a series of questions. An underlying finding came about the conversation Participants feel invisible because they are always clumped into the Latino community, are discriminated and minimized of their indigenous identity.
An attainable outcome of the focus group was a need for a cultural event to gather the Ñuu Savi (Mixtec) community. The focus group members ended up organizing a collaborative composed of indigenous Ñuu Savi women. The women who are organized under the name Ñu’un Nducha have been planning La Guelaguetza en Oregon.