By: Dalton Kimbro
On Tuesday, the department of sociology, anthropology and social work held an event in the Taylor Center showcasing students’ projects for Dia de Los Muertos. Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a Latin American holiday celebrated on November 1 where families and friends can celebrate and honor their deceased. Some customs include parties, parades and the building of altars to honor the dead. “The entire purpose is to remember the dead that you were close to and honor their lives,” said Dr. Kimberly Pyszka, a professor at AUM’s department of sociology, anthropology and social work. The celebration featured free food, tattoos and stickers for attendees, along with a showcase of projects from Pyszka’s anthropology of death and dying class and Prof. Brannon Barragan’s Spanish 1020 class. Students from each class were asked to build “altares,” or altars, to commemorate a deceased celebrity, pet or loved one. Unlike traditional Day of the Dead altars, the students’ altars were constructed out of shoeboxes and tri-fold boards, but despite the scaled-down nature of the altars, all of them still included traditional details like pictures of the deceased, sugar skulls, crosses and flowers. Along with these, students also followed the Latin-American tradition of including personal items of the deceased, which could be almost anything special to that person. “It’s good for students to learn about the diversity and differences in cultures,” said Pyszka. “In my death and dying class, we’ve been studying the differences in how cultures remember the dead. In America, we go to funerals after someone dies and then maybe lay flowers on their graves every once in a while, but in Latin America, they have a set day every year to celebrate the lives of those they have lost, so there’s a big cultural difference there.” Pyszka also added that “Dia de Los Muertos is a celebration. It isn’t a sad event like a funeral. It’s more about celebrating people’s lives and legacies, not mourning.” Despite the event in the Taylor Center ending, you can check out some of the altars on the 2nd floor of the library in the W.A.S.C.
