Mexico : The ‘Day of the Dead’ is celebrated on November 1 every year in Mexico. On this day people go to the graves of their ancestors. They decorate it, bring the favorite things of the dead. It is considered one of the largest and most famous festivals in Mexico. A crying contest is also held on this day. The person who cries the most in the competition is awarded a prize.
The situation in Mexico is very dire because of the corona. So this year the entire cemetery is closed for the festival. According to a NYT report, public celebrations are banned on ‘Day of the Dead’ this year. No one went to the cemetery to celebrate the festival. But the annual crying competition in the city of San Juan del Rio also took place this year. But the competition was held online this year. People had sent 2-2 minute crying videos for the competition.
You have to perform live in this competition every year. But this year the virtual competition had an amazing, twice as many entries as every year. The tradition of choosing the best weeper is part of the ancient tradition here, in which women used to be hired to weep after the death of someone. The first prize of this crying competition was won by Princess Catalina Chavez of California. Chavez, who is an actress, said this time that Corona made her cry.
Eduardo Guillen, head of the tourism bureau, said that not only crying over someone’s death, but also smiling is part of Mexican culture. This is one way to deal with the problem. After watching the weird video of crying for the competition, the judges on the panel announced that men could also take part in the crying competition next year.
