From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death

by Caitlin Doughty

During this time, as scholar Claudio Lomnitz wrote, the Days of the Dead “became a generalized marker of national identity” that stood “opposite of the Americanized celebration of Halloween.” Those who had once rejected the Días de los Muertos (or who lived in areas where it had never been practiced at all) came to see the celebration as very Mexican. Not only did Días de los Muertos return to major cities—looking at you, James Bond parade; the festival also came to represent the struggles of many disenfranchised political groups. These groups adopted Días de los Muertos to mourn for those kept from the public eye, including sex workers, indigenous and gay rights groups, and Mexicans who had died trying to cross the border to the U.S. In the last forty years, Días de los Muertos has come to represent popular culture, tourist culture, and protest culture throughout Mexico. And Mexico itself is viewed as a world leader in practicing engaged, public grief.