El Grito - Mexican Independence Day Celebration

Event Details

Since the late 20th century, the Hidalgo “Grito de Dolores” (Cry of Dolores) has become emblematic of Mexican independence. This event has since assumed an almost mythic status. Every year, millions of Mexicans, Mexican Americans and fellow revelers from around the world gather late the night before Mexican Independence Day (September 16th) to join a massive synchronized call and response. The Grito de Dolores was uttered from the small town of Dolores, near Guanajuato in México on September 16, 1810, by Miguel Hidalgo a Roman Catholic Priest as the pronunciamento (declaration) of the Mexican War of Independence. Since 1825, the anniversary of the event is celebrated as Mexican Independence Day. Every year on the night of September 15th at around eleven in the evening, the President of México rings the bell of the National Palace in México City. After the ringing of the bell, he repeats a shout of patriotism based upon “El Grito de Dolores", including the names of the important heroes of the Mexican War of Independence who were part of that very historical moment and ending with the threefold shout of ¡Viva México! from the balcony of the palace to the assembled crowd in the Plaza de la Constitución, also known as the Zócalo, one of the largest public plazas in the world.