The fourth annual East Boston Latin Music and Dance Festival took place on Friday, September 13, as an early kick-off for Hispanic Heritage Month. The festival is part of a joint effort by Zumix, the Veronica Robles Cultural Center (VROCC), East Boston Main Streets, and State Senator Lydia Edwards to celebrate the neighborhood’s rich Latin roots. 

Live performances by local musicians were accompanied by traditional Colombian, Peruvian, and Mexican dances by the Bajucol Dance Company, Pumawari Tusuy, and VROCC Youth Dancers, entertaining a diverse crowd of Eastie locals and neighbors from across the city.

A similar festival in Everett, Fiesta del Rio, was cancelled this week due to fears of being raided by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

Massachusetts has seen an uptick in ICE operations overall as part of the “Patriot 2.0” initiative targeting Boston’s sanctuary city status. The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit on September 4, alleging the city’s policies interfere with the federal enforcement of immigration law. Though Mayor Michelle Wu has held firm that the city will uphold the Boston Trust Act, the Supreme Court has upheld ICE agents’ ability to apprehend anyone they suspect of being in the country illegally – even if that belief is based solely on the suspect’s race.

“This is how we fight injustices that we’ve been experiencing around the country in recent times. This is how we fight the good fight,” said planning committee member and Salsa y Control director Johnny Giraldo. In organizing the festival, Giraldo noted their biggest challenge is incorporating as many identities as possible to bring people together and celebrate one another. 

As the sun began to set, “¡Con Salsa!” host and community activist Jose Massó III took to the stage to introduce La Rockola Boston, an American/Latin fusion ensemble.

“The theme this year is un solo ritmo, una sola comunidad. One rhythm, one community,” he said. 

“There are people who want to divide us because of our religion. There are people who want to divide us because of our gender. There are people who want to divide us because we may be LGBTQ. There are people who might divide us because of trans people. There are people who want to divide us because they want to be the ones in charge of this nation. And what do we say?” 

“Hell no,” roared the crowd.

“And because we say it with unity, that makes us stronger,” Massó responded. “And these living angels through their music are the ones that give us that energy, that power to be united and to be strong and walk out of here with our heads up high,”

Speaking to the fear and uncertainty felt nationwide, Massó evoked the lyrics of Puerto Rican musician and “King of Latin Trap” Bad Bunny: “Yo soy de p.”

“Which means he is proud of being a Puerto Rican like you are proud of being a Colombian or from Guatemala, from Mexico or Salvador, Chile, whatever country you are from, be proud and say it loud,” Massó exclaimed. 

“And if you’re from this country, be proud as long as you are standing for democracy, inclusivity, diversity, and equity. Be proud of what democracy stands for.”