Sacramento’s Dia de los Muertos resumes in-person celebrations after COVID-19 break

The floral fragrance of marigolds in the air, mariachi music and colorful altars honoring the dead filled Sacramento’s annual Day of the Dead celebration on Thursday.

This year’s four-day celebration, known as the 12th El Panteón de Sacramento, at the Latino Center of Art & Culture allowed visitors to walk through the event, a stark difference from last year’s somber event that turned into a drive-through affair to stem the spread of COVID-19.

Day of the Dead, known as Día de Los Muertos in Spanish, is a holiday observed between Nov. 1 and Nov. 2. The Mesoamerican holiday is steeped in Catholic tradition. Since the release of the 2017 Pixar film “Coco,” it has become more popularized in the U.S. by younger generations.

The holiday is a celebration for family members and friends to remember their loved ones who have died by decorating altars of the deceased with their favorite foods, belongings or portraits. For many who celebrate the holiday, it is believed that Día de Los Muertos allows the deceased to visit the living world.

Marie Acosta, emeritus executive director of the Latino Center of Art and Culture, expects 15,000 people to visit the event this weekend.

“Day of the Dead is probably the most important tradition in all of Mesoamerica,” she said. “It is a centuries-old tradition that celebrates the passing of our loved ones.”

Acosta said she plans to honor her brother, who died of COVID-19 last year, and father, who died at the age of 101, this weekend.

But Acosta said she didn’t want to focus the event on the devastation the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the state’s Latino communities.

“We’re not gonna focus so much on the destruction of COVID-19, which has decimated our community.” said Acosta. “We’re trying to focus on what the beauty of this day means.”

In California, Latino communities have borne the brunt of the pandemic, making up nearly half of the state’s COVID-19 cases and deaths, according to figures from the California Public Department of Health.

Carlos Macias, of Sacramento, said he attended Thursday night’s event to remember his mother who died of liver cancer two years ago. He added it was his first time observing the holiday. He said his sister built an altar, also known as an ofrenda, for their mother with her favorite snacks.

“Her favorite things were (sunflower) seeds and gum,” Macias, 27, said.

Bridgett Rangal-Rexford, 32, built an altar in honor of her twin sister who died in her mother’s womb when she was five months pregnant. Her sister’s altar contained a variety of sugar skulls, lights and bright candles.

“It’s sort of a healing process for me,” she said. “Especially because we don’t have any photos or anything of her.”

This story was originally published October 30, 2021 at 5:55 AM.