What do you think about Thanksgiving?
Do you celebrate it?
Do you know people who celebrate it?

1. Daniel Ayon, 63, retired. There are some Mexicans in northeastern Mexico who celebrate this holiday, especially those with a very close relationship with the U.S. There’s also some families on the border with the U.S. that celebrate this holiday. But “Mexico,” the whole population doesn’t celebrate anything related to Thanksgiving day, although it is indicated in some Catholic celebrations and calendars. We have our own celebrations and they are beautiful. I could not think of a reason to keep trying to be like the U.S.

2. Salma Gutierrez, 28, merchant. Mexico does not celebrate it. We know about it because of American media, but we do not participate. What we do is, some businesses like HEB and Walmart in Mexico sell turkey dinner. Some people in the city of Nuevo Laredo start calling it Dia del Pavo, or “Turkey Day” just because the tradition is to dine on turkey. My family does not follow this tradition. Instead, we cross to the U.S. to buy a turkey for Christmas which is actually celebrated in Mexico. I don’t mind people who celebrate it. I just think it’s an effort to whitewash Mexico even further.

3. Hugo Lopez, 30, accountant. Generally, no. But you could say that border cities could be an exception to this rule. I’m from Tijuana, and here, many families celebrate it (some people even call it día del pavo). Most of them are either Mexican-American or have strong ties to the U.S. I think they usually celebrate it the same way Americans do by having a big dinner with their loved ones or crossing over to the U.S. to meet their families and have their meeting over there.

In my case, I have a few relatives that live in the U.S., and I know they do celebrate it every year, but my family does not, since Thanksgiving does not hold any special meaning for us of any kind, so there is no reason to celebrate it.

4. Andrés Villa, 23, student. Do you know why Thanksgiving is celebrated in the U.S. and Canada? Most Mexicans would find a holiday remembering when foreigners invaded, killed the locals and celebrated their victory with a feast very offensive. If you are asking if foreigners in Mexico celebrate Thanksgiving, yes, many restaurants serve Canadian and U.S. Thanksgiving dinners. For our values (Mexicans values) we don’t celebrate that thanksgiving and later you kill and steal all the land of the Native American Indians. We Mexicans don’t have that kind of white cultural mentality, and still killing minorities. No other countries celebrate it because it was started when the pilgrims were starving in November and the Indians gave them food.

5. Pamela Chavez, 37, stay at home mom. My kid’s school is Americanized and they do celebrate it. I have taken a liking to having a special dinner and having everyone around give thanks and stuff, but for me, it really is like any other holiday. I don’t make turkey or anything like that. Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, some of the Caribbean islands, and Liberia. It began as a day of giving thanks and sacrifice for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Similarly named festival holidays occur in Germany and Japan. Presumably, Mexico has the same reasons.

6. Gael Llaca, 43, unemployed. I thought it was not celebrated until I moved to a city near the border with the U.S. and found out many people throughout the border area celebrate it. Some companies (manufacturers) in Mexico have it as an official holiday. So, very few people celebrate it, but they do.