Hispanic American Student Association celebrates Day of the Dead

Yellows, greens, pinks and blues painted the corner of Felgar Street and Asp Avenue Friday evening as a Day of the Dead street festival kicked off and people rushed in.

The festival ended the Hispanic American Student Association’s weeklong string of events promoting Hispanic culture and raising awareness for diversity on OU’s campus, said Crystal Garcia, the association’s advisor.

Around 500 people crowded the street in front of Oklahoma Memorial Union from 6 to 11 p.m. to get a taste of the free food that was donated from various restaurants like Fuzzy’s Taco Shop and Juan Del Fuego.

The food was really good, said accounting senior Katie Rutledge with chips and salsa from Pepe Delgado’s Authentic Mexican in her hand.

Set up along the street were booths where people could make authentic Day of the Dead items like kites and altars. There also was a face-painting booth where normal humans were transformed into skeletons with the addition of paint.

“I really like [the face paint,]” street fair volunteer, Taaka Lwande, said about her partial skeleton face paint, featuring a pale white background accented with a red and black flower around her eye. “It’s my favorite colors.”

The event was educational and fun for everyone involved, said Thais Fermoselles, University College freshman and volunteer for the event.

“Hispanics have a really interesting culture, and I love learning about different cultures,” Fermoselles said.

Elyssa Szkirpan contributed to this story.

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