By Acton Bell
From Patrick Henry’s proclamation, “Give me liberty or give me death,” to Martin Luther King’s: “I have a dream;” leaders have raised their voices and changed history. Such was the clarion call in México on September 16, 1810, when Miguel Hidalgo cried out to the people to become free. For many months the criollos—children of Spaniards, born in America—had been conspiring to overthrow Spanish rule. Led by Ignacio Allende and Miguel Hidalgo, they met in Querétaro, Dolores, and San Miguel, hoping to find the right time to start a revolution.
They focused on the end of September, when festivities for the Archangel St. Michael, patron saint of San Miguel, would bring massive crowds and offer cover for their attack. But they did not count on a traitor in their midst. Suddenly their plans were revealed, and arrest orders were issued. Then Josefa Ortiz, the wife of the Corregidor (equivalent to governor), and a member of the conspiratorial group, learned about the betrayal.
Prevented by her husband from informing Allende about the leak, she sent a government employee to San Miguel to deliver the message that their secret had been revealed. He reached San Miguel on horseback in the late afternoon, but found out that Allende was in Dolores.
The messenger rode to Dolores, and when the leaders were given the news, they debated what action to take. Allende favored postponing the attack, but Miguel Hidalgo would not hear it. It was dawn of September 16, and he ordered the church bells to toll loud and clear, and gather all the parishioners.
Then Hidalgo stood before them and incited them to fight for freedom. We do not know the exact words he used, but his cry for action was like a burst of fire that generated an eruption of support. The people rose up, grabbed whatever they could use as weapons, and began their march to San Miguel. Hidalgo’s cry—El Grito—became the call to arms that started the War of Independence.
In 1821, eleven years later, México was an independent nation, and a democratic republic.
For more than 200 years, Mexicans have celebrated September 16th, as Independence Day. And this year will be the same, with a major part of the celebration the reenactment of El Grito. At 11pm on September 15th, the mayor will step onto the balcony of Ignacio Allende’s home, across from the Parroquia and declare before a packed crowd: Viva México!
Come see fireworks color the skies with brilliant lights, the air filled with noisy eruptions, and the response from those present: Viva México! Viva México! Viva!
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