Pierce celebrated Dia de los Muertos with help from the Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan (MECHA) club in the Great Hall.
The holiday originates from Aztec and Mayan traditions, according to Club Adviser Xocoyotizin Herrera. It is a celebration of the life of a dead loved one.
MECHA is a club dedicated to promoting Chicano Studies.
Some of the students who attended the event had the opportunity to get their face painted in the form of a “calavera” or skull.
The students could also take part in making art for the dead in the form of “papel picado” which is a decoration in which various patterns are cut into the paper.
Traditional sweet bread “Pan de Muerto” was placed around an altar as an important part of the celebration.
The altars are made to honor our dead loved ones, according to Herrera. The altar consists of various items that the individual liked when they were alive. The items can include dishes of food, drinks and alcoholic beverages.
“[The altars] can have anything the individual liked.” Said Herrera
Along with the dishes and drinks the altar will also contain a picture of the individual, a candle to guide them, sweet bread, and the traditional cempasuchil flower.
In Mexico the events are hosted in the cemetery where the individual was buried.
“It’s not a time of mourning,” said Herrera. “It’s a time to celebrate the dead.”