Cinco de Mayo parade brings joy of community and culture to heart of downtown

Saturday, May 3, 2025 4:00PM

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Culture, history, and community combined as one of the city’s biggest Hispanic celebrations returned to downtown Houston on Saturday.

Colorful vehicles and floats weaved through the streets as the 2025 LULAC District 8 Cinco de Mayo Parade also provided an opportunity for schools, businesses and organizations to celebrate alongside each other.

ABC13 anchor Mayra Moreno served as emcee.

The celebration is important to Mexican Americans, but is not, as it is often misidentified or confused with, Mexico’s Independence Day. (That would be El Grito on Sept. 16.)

Still, it’s pretty pivotal.

Cinco de Mayo actually commemorates the Mexican army’s victory over France at the Battle of Puebla, during the Franco-Mexican War.

“For us, Cinco de Mayo is very precious, and it should definitely be appreciated not just by Latinos, but by everyone,” Mary Ramos, who has been organizing the parade for more than two decades, told ABC13 in 2024. “Everyone in the community is welcome.”

WATCH: 2023 LULAC Dist. 8 Cinco de Mayo Parade

Astros legend Jose Cruz was honored as a co-grand marshal during the return of the LULAC Houston Cinco de Mayo Parade in 2023.

Ramos said the parade has grown exponentially over the years, keeping pace with Houston’s growing Latin and Hispanic communities.

Citing the U.S. Census Bureau, our partners at the Houston Chronicle note the 10-county Houston metropolitan area is home to the fourth-largest Hispanic and Latino populations in the nation. That’s after only Los Angeles, New York City and Miami.

Bureau data in 2022 found that Hispanic people made up 40.2% of the population, officially making up the largest population group in Texas.

The Hispanic community also has a strong voice in entrepreneurship.

In 2023, the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce shared that 42% of all businesses in the city are owned by Hispanic people, accounting for more than 150,000 businesses.

“For a few years, there were just 12 of us that did the entire parade,” Ramos said. “Now we get dozens and dozens of volunteers from all over.”

You can learn more about other volunteer opportunities by visiting LULAC’s website.

ABC13 is proud to have again served as the official media partner of LULAC District 8’s Cinco de Mayo Parade.

PHOTOS: LULAC Houston Cinco de Mayo Parade 2023