While St. Paul gears up for the crowds and car shows of this weekend’s Cinco de Mayo festival, the view from the West Side looks a little different for Bob Cruz. 

When Operation Metro Surge unfolded across the state this past winter, he spent his free time delivering groceries to families and driving residents to and from work. 

Then Cruz heard that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were attempting to enter El Burrito Mercado in December. 

“I just couldn’t sit back,” he said. “I made sure that I or one of my coaches was at that door — and outside other businesses along Cesar Chavez — because people were scared.”

As executive director of St. Paul’s West Side Boosters club, Cruz is used to mentoring youth and organizing sports for more than 1,200 participants. During the period of heightened immigration enforcement, his role shifted. He and a network of coaches and volunteers began showing up daily, responding to fear that had spread through the neighborhood. 

Inside homes, Cruz said he encountered scenes that stayed with him. 

“There were families that taped their windows with garbage bags and made it dark so people outside couldn’t see in,” he said. “When I walked in to drop off groceries, the look on these kids’ faces was fear, like ‘Who are you? Is everything going to be OK? Are more people going to come into the house?’ It hurt to see them in fear.”

This year, Cruz has been named the grand marshal of St. Paul’s Cinco de Mayo celebration. While the holiday marks the Mexican army’s 1862 victory against French forces at the Battle of Puebla, the day has also become a symbol of community resistance. 

“With what was going on with ICE, we were going to cancel this year,” Cruz said. “But we had another meeting and we were like, ‘You know what? Let’s put this event on.’ So many people are in the house. This might be the first kick-off to summer to unite everybody.” 

Keep reading to learn more about this year’s festivities and more ways to tap into the Twin Cities art scene this weekend:

Lowriders, lucha libre and live music

The West Side Fiesta Committee will kick off Cinco de Mayo on Friday with a car show at Harriet Island from 5 to 8 p.m. 

On Saturday, a parade will wind along Cesar Chavez Street, featuring more than 80 local businesses, schools and community leaders. Festivities continue throughout the day with a second car show at El Burrito Mercado, more than 50 food trucks and a vendor marketplace. 

Across three stages, local dance groups, traditional Mexican bands and R&B artists will perform, with lucha libre wrestlers stepping into the ring. 

Artists trace the movement of culture

At Fresh Eye Gallery, 12 Minnesota-based artists are exploring how their culture persists and evolves across borders and generations in “What Follows.” 

Curated by Bo Young An, the exhibit includes painter Mubarak Nasser Al-Thani, who deconstructs urban and rural landscapes; Thea Lauren Pineda, who sketches the queer Filipino experience; Nancy Ariza, who honors her Mexican roots through textile and printmaking; and Shun Yong, who photographs Minnesota’s immigrant communities within their professional work spaces. 

Date: Through May 31

Time: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays. 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. 

Location: Fresh Eye Gallery, 4238 Nicollet Ave. S., Minneapolis

Cost: Free

For more information: Visit fresheyegallery.com/exhibitions/what-follows 

A night of comedy

 A lineup of eight up-and-coming comedians is heading to Minneapolis’ Sisyphus Brewing Saturday night for “Comedia Mexicana.” 

Hosted by Bryant Alexander, the show features René Humberto Valdiviezo, David Andrade, Julian Diaz, Max Chapman, Luis Uz, and Somali American guest DQ, with 19-year-old comic Chivo headlining. 

Show and tell

The Minneapolis-based creative collective Flavor World is hosting a monthly Art Share. Artists across mediums are invited to debut new works in a 10-minute open-mic format at Flavor World’s headquarters. This month’s installment celebrates visual artist Zoe Swain, who will display her work on the storefront’s window gallery. 

A May Day block party – photos

Minneapolis is celebrating May Day at Powderhorn Pork this Sunday with a noon parade down Bloomington Avenue. Hundreds of neighbors have been busy building puppets and rehearsing for the Tree of Life ceremony that follows the parade. If you’re heading out, feel free to bring blankets, water and snacks to settle in for the ceremony. 

The park will host live music across eight stages, including Summer Cypher’s old school hip-hop and DJs from People’s Sound Minneapolis. Food trucks will be on-site serving everything from Mexican and Jamaican street food to Ukrainian and Chilean cuisine. 

Just down the street, a block party “In the Spirit of MayDay,” will feature cumbia-rock from América y Los Sentimientos, alternative rock from SoulFlower, and protest music from Brass Solidarity. Learn more about May Day in South Minneapolis here. 

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