PHOTOS: Embracing Día de los Muertos in Oakland's Fruitvale District

On Sunday, Oct. 29, the Unity Council, an important cultural and resource hub in the Fruitvale District, orchestrated one of the Bay Area’s grandest Día de los Muertos celebrations at Oakland’s Fruitvale Village. The non-profit has become the driving force behind this annual free extravaganza which draws nearly 100,000 attendees each year.

Along with Danza Azteca, tours of altars (ofrendas), lowriders and street vendors, the festival provides space to utilize art and cultural traditions as tools for community healing and remembering late loved ones. After all, that’s what Día de los Muertos is all about — although it gets commonly mistaken as “Mexican Halloween.”

Día de los Muertos is a Mexican tradition that dates back thousands of years to the Aztecs and other Indigenous communities in what is now central Mexico. These communities saw, and still see, death as an integral part of life. The tradition bridges the living and the deceased by using offerings, like a late loved one’s favorite food, cups of water, marigolds and more placed on a dedicated altar.

When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, the tradition became a mixture of Mesoamerican ritual, European religion, and Spanish culture. Since being blended into European religion, Día de los Muertos, originally honored during the summer season, now coincides with All Saints Day on Nov. 1 and All Souls Day on Nov. 2.

As the Fruitvale streets brimmed with milky aromatic smoke, marigolds and sugar skulls, KQED’s Paloma Abarca and photographer Estefany Gonzalez captured the essence of Día de los Muertos, highlighting how participants pay tribute to their late loved ones.