Wauconda cancels Mexican Independence Day festival as other suburbs plan to stay the course

Amid concerns over U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity in the Chicago area, most suburbs are carrying on with their planned Mexican Independence Day celebrations this weekend.

The one exception so far is Wauconda, which canceled its annual Latin Heritage Fest scheduled for Saturday.

Organizers characterized it as a “difficult decision.”

In a Sept. 5 Wauconda police Facebook post, police, church and village officials said the determination was made based on the “recent climate and concerns in our area related to immigration.”

“We know how meaningful this event is for our community and the choice was not made lightly by the committee,” the post reads. “Our goal is always to ensure that everyone feels safe, respected and welcome in Wauconda.”

The parties are committed to honoring the diversity that makes the village strong and look forward to future opportunities to celebrate together, according to the post.

“We want people to feel like we’re here for everyone,” Wauconda police Sgt. Heather Cognac said.

Church officials declined to discuss the situation. Cognac said there were general concerns from the community, and it was not just a police department decision.

“The best thing to do right now is to cancel the event,” she said.

Meanwhile, the organizers of festivals in West Chicago, Elgin, Naperville, Schaumburg and Waukegan say the events should proceed as planned.

Sugeira Tellez of Despertar Latino, the cultural and social service organization hosting the Viva Mexico Independence Day Festival in West Chicago, acknowledges that organizers have “concerns” ahead of the Sunday event.

“We are concerned, but we also know it’s important to have this event,” Tellez said. “We want to make sure that people know we are doing this event to celebrate our culture, our heritage, and show that we are part of the community.”

She said the festival, which runs from noon to 6 p.m. in downtown West Chicago, is part of a long tradition in the city of celebrating Mexican Independence Day.

“We are part of the community and we just want to show the good side of our culture instead of going with the same rhetoric that we hear in some media,” Tellez said.

La Fiesta de Elgin is set to return for its third year Saturday with a day of festivities, including a car parade, live music, a vendor market, cultural art installations, food vendors and fireworks.

“We invite all residents to join us for a great day of music, food, culture and community pride as we come together to celebrate Mexican Independence Day,” said Jeff Knox, the city’s director of communications and engagement.

Just north in Carpentersville, Village President John Skillman said everything was “moving forward” with Saturday’s El Grito festival. The event will start with a parade at 11 a.m., followed by a festival at Carpenter Park.

The Naperville Sister Cities Foundation still is advertising plans to host the Naperville Hispanic Heritage Festival on Saturday in Central Park downtown. The event is scheduled to run from 6 to 9 p.m.

Officials from the Archdiocese of Chicago confirmed that Fiesta Mexicana at Schaumburg’s St. Gregory of Nyssa Parish will take place this weekend. The celebration of Mexican food, culture and music will run from noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday at 1451 Bode Road.

Two events celebrating the independence of Mexico and other Latin American countries and Hispanic Heritage Month are expected to proceed as scheduled this weekend in Waukegan.

On Saturday, Festival de Independencia de Mexico will be held from noon to 8 p.m. at Lakehurst Center, 300 Lakehurst Road. Then the Viva la Independencia Parade steps off at noon Sunday from Washington and Butrick streets and ends in downtown Waukegan.

• Daily Herald staff writers Dave Oberhelman, Eric Peterson and Katlyn Smith contributed to this report.