{"id":347680,"date":"2025-12-17T03:40:41","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T03:40:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/american-history\/celebrating-las-posadas-in-chicago\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T03:40:41","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T03:40:41","slug":"celebrating-las-posadas-in-chicago","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

\n

Each year, the tradition of Las Posadas is observed by the Latino\/a\/e communities from December 16 to 24. In this blog post, CHM curator of religion and community history Rebekah Coffman writes about the Mexican origins of Las Posadas and how it has been celebrated in Chicago.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"
Members of Chicago\u2019s Mexican community celebrate their 9th annual Posada, December 19, 1967. CHM, ST-14002227-0003, Chicago Sun-Times collection<\/em><\/p>\n

From December 16 to 24, Latine communities celebrate Las Posadas, a nine-day celebration and time of remembrance leading up to Christmas. Most closely associated with Mexico and the Mexican diaspora in the United States, Posadas originated in Mexico City in the 16th century<\/a> through the influence of Spanish Catholic missionaries.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Creche in a wooden stable, with Mary, Joseph, and the Baby Jesus and some sheep, c. 1954. Vivian Maier, photographer. CHM, ICH-180071<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPosada\u201d means \u201cinn\u201d or \u201caccommodation\u201d in Spanish. In the Christian Bible\u2019s Christmas story, Joseph and Mary made a journey to Joseph\u2019s hometown, Bethlehem, where Jesus would be born. Upon arrival, they struggled to find a place to sleep for the night, or as the Bible verse Luke 2:7 says, \u201cthere was no guest room available for them,\u201d and so Mary and Joseph instead stayed in a place for animals where Jesus was born.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Members of Chicago\u2019s Mexican community celebrate their 9th annual Posada, December 19, 1967. CHM, ST-14002227-0002, Chicago Sun-Times collection<\/em><\/p>\n

The Posadas are based on Mary and Joseph\u2019s search that night for a place to sleep. The nine days of the celebration symbolize the nine months of Mary\u2019s pregnancy and are part public procession, part Christmas pageant\/play. Two individuals dress up as Mary and Joseph, and a procession goes from house to house that are assigned to act as \u201cinns.\u201d People sing songs along the way, including songs like Los Santos Reyes<\/a>, a kind of call and response between those asking for shelter and those denying accommodation, until the final stop welcomes them in as pilgrims<\/a>. The celebration ends with sharing food and a hitting a pi\u00f1ata, usually star-shaped, which can serve as a sign of faith and hope like the star of Bethlehem or a symbol of sin and temptations that are struggled against leading up to Jesus\u2019s birth.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"
Front and back of menu from Cafe Azteca II at 215 West North Avenue, 1977. CHM, ICHi-050827-001 (left) and ICHi-050827-003 (right)<\/em><\/p>\n

In Chicago, the Mexican community has been celebrating Las Posadas for many decades. The Chicago Tribune reports that Posada celebrations began along North Avenue in Old Town<\/a> in 1958. The Caf\u00e9 Azteca<\/a> located at 210 W. North Avenue was a sponsor and regular host site for Posadas. Founded by Federico Camacho, who migrated to Chicago from Oaxaca, Mexico, in 1946, Caf\u00e9 Azteca opened on May 11, 1957, as one of only a handful of sit-down Mexican restaurants in the city at the time. Beyond his reputation for delicious food, Camacho was known as a convivial musician, playing guitar and marimba, among others.<\/p>\n

In 1969, the caf\u00e9 was forced to move because of a road-widening project as part of urban renewal<\/a>, which the Chicago Sun-Times<\/em> called in its reporting on June 22, 1969, \u201canother victim of the juggernaut of progress.\u201d It later reopened across the street as Caf\u00e9 Azteca II in a former popcorn shop, creating a mission-style interior complete with life-size religious statues that signaled Camacho\u2019s Catholic roots.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Members of Chicago\u2019s Mexican community celebrate their 9th annual Posada, December 19, 1967. CHM, ST-14002227-0005, Chicago Sun-Times collection<\/em><\/p>\n

Through the 1960s, the Posadas grew in popularity and public awareness, with John Cardinal Cody, then Archbishop of Chicago, even joining the proceedings in 1968. This series of photographs taken for the Chicago Sun-Times<\/em> capture the Posadas\u2019 vibrant spirit during the 1960s. That year\u2019s procession began and ended at Caf\u00e9 Azteca, led by a burro named \u201cEstrelita\u201d and community members dressed as Mary, Joseph, and the Three Wise Men. It ended like other Posadas, with a breaking of pi\u00f1atas (this time shaped like birds, not stars) filled with candy and toys and sharing ponche (a hot, spiced fruit punch) and tamales.<\/p>\n

Mr. Camacho passed away in 1989, and the caf\u00e9 closed for good in 2004.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Members of Chicago\u2019s Mexican community celebrate their 9th annual Posada, December 19, 1967. CHM, ST-14002227-0007, Chicago Sun-Times collection<\/em><\/p>\n

However, Posadas traditions have continued around the city in many different ways. For example, for twenty years, the Archdiocese of Chicago has hosted an Annual Posada for Immigration Reform. Aligned with the spirit of traditional Posadas, the archdiocese\u2019s Office of Human Dignity and Solidarity<\/a>-Immigration Ministry brings attention to the tradition and the realities immigrant communities face today. As the 2025 event<\/a> says, \u201ctoday\u2019s immigrants, like the Holy Family, are vulnerable, seek legislative shelter and protection but often face rejection.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Each year, the tradition of Las Posadas is observed by the Latino\/a\/e communities from December 16 to 24. In this blog post, CHM curator of religion and community history Rebekah Coffman writes about the Mexican origins of Las Posadas and how it has been celebrated in Chicago. Members of Chicago\u2019s Mexican community celebrate their 9th […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":347681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12032],"tags":[4711,12846,16810,169872],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-347680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american-history","tag-celebrating","tag-chicago","tag-las","tag-posadas"],"yoast_head":"\nCelebrating Las Posadas in Chicago - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Each year, the tradition of Las Posadas is observed by the Latino\/a\/e communities from December 16 to 24. In this blog post, CHM curator of religion and community history Rebekah Coffman writes about the Mexican origins of Las Posadas and how it has been celebrated in Chicago. Members of Chicago\u2019s Mexican community celebrate their 9th […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-17T03:40:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"995\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\"},\"headline\":\"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-17T03:40:41+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680\"},\"wordCount\":790,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Celebrating\",\"Chicago\",\"Las\",\"Posadas\"],\"articleSection\":[\"American History\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680\",\"name\":\"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago - Som2ny Network\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-17T03:40:41+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg\",\"width\":1500,\"height\":995},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"description\":\"Daily Deals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"width\":300,\"height\":86,\"caption\":\"Som2ny Network\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago - Som2ny Network","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago - Som2ny Network","og_description":"Each year, the tradition of Las Posadas is observed by the Latino\/a\/e communities from December 16 to 24. In this blog post, CHM curator of religion and community history Rebekah Coffman writes about the Mexican origins of Las Posadas and how it has been celebrated in Chicago. Members of Chicago\u2019s Mexican community celebrate their 9th […]","og_url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680","og_site_name":"Som2ny Network","article_published_time":"2025-12-17T03:40:41+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1500,"height":995,"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371"},"headline":"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago","datePublished":"2025-12-17T03:40:41+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680"},"wordCount":790,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg","keywords":["Celebrating","Chicago","Las","Posadas"],"articleSection":["American History"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680","name":"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago - Som2ny Network","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg","datePublished":"2025-12-17T03:40:41+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/st14002227_0002.jpg","width":1500,"height":995},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=347680#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Celebrating Las Posadas in Chicago"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","name":"Som2ny Network","description":"Daily Deals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization","name":"Som2ny Network","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","width":300,"height":86,"caption":"Som2ny Network"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/fivemor.com"],"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/347680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=347680"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/347680\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/347681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=347680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=347680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=347680"},{"taxonomy":"dealstore","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fdealstore&post=347680"},{"taxonomy":"offerexpiration","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fofferexpiration&post=347680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}