The Dominican community celebrates its Independence Day
by sdmn
The committee of Dominicanos Unidos en el estado de Alaska organized a community event to celebrate their Independence Day.
The Dominican Republic is a beautiful and warm country that is located in the heart of the Caribbean surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and the Caribbean Sea to the south. A third of this beautiful island is shared with another country, Haiti.It has a population that exceeds 11 million inhabitants.
On February 27, 1844, approximately 179 years ago, it celebrated its last independence, which was from Haiti.Years earlier, the Dominican Republic had been under the rule of the Spanish crown.
Some interesting facts about the Dominican Republic are: It boasts the first Cathedral of America, the first hospital, the first Mass officiated in America. It hosts the first Santiago de America, the first headquarters of religious organizations. It is home to the first book written in Spanish in America, the first Christian Shrine in America, and the first University of the New World, to name a few.
Dominicans come from a diversified racial conglomerate: Europeans, Africans, Arabs, Chinese, Jews. They are a collection of people with the same traditional values and feelings of their homeland. There is a population of 2,181,419 residing in the United States, and in Alaska, there areabout 2,271 legal residents.
The program presented typical dances, tasty Dominican dishes, Colombian coffee, and the opportunity to visit with old friends. Dominican women proudly wore typical dresses which bear the colors of their flag.Among the different nationalities that attended the celebration, new friendships emerged, along with a feeling of unity and a desire to continue learning from each other.
The event was accomplished with the support of various members of the Latino community and the long hours of effort and dedication of the organizing committee. Thank you, Ninetta Regalado, Angela Jimenez, Gabriel McQueen, Mercedes Blanco and Eusebio Martínez, for sharing such a significant event with us!
