The Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos or Día de los Muertos) is a holiday largely developed in Mexico, where it is mostly observed, but also in other places, especially by people of Mexican heritage elsewhere. It normally takes place on All Saints Day and All Souls Day (November 1 and 2).

Traditions connected with the holiday include honoring the deceased using calaveras and marigold flowers known as cempazúchitl, building home altars called ofrendas with the favorite foods and beverages of the departed, and visiting graves with these items as gifts for the deceased. The celebration is not solely focused on the dead, as it is also common to give gifts to friends such as candy sugar skulls, to share traditional pan de muerto with family and friends, and to write light-hearted and often irreverent verses in the form of mock epitaphs dedicated to living friends and acquaintances, a literary form known as calaveras literarias.

In Cleveland, the Day of the Dead is celebrated with a cemetery of ofrendas (altars) on the Cleveland Public Theatre grounds. There are food trucks, shopping and community organizations but the most fun is people watching as colorful costumes and makeup are worn.

The highlight is the Skulls and Skeletons Parade down Detroit Ave.

Enjoy these images from the 2022 Day of the Dead in Cleveland and be sure to visit the Skulls and Skeletons Parade and Day of the Dead Cemetery Altars Pages.

Rey Esparza, Parade Grand Marshal

Patty Esparza

Rey and Patty Esparza

Edurado Rodriguez,
Executive Director, Comité Mexicano de Cleveland

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