Thank you to Cheri-Ann Leon for your beautiful and courageous essay “We Were Fiesta — A Love Letter and Reckoning with What’s Been Lost” (August 5, 2025). I’m inspired to join you in advocating for change.
As a white male raised Catholic and living in Santa Barbara for the past 20 years, I’ve grown increasingly uncomfortable with Fiesta. It romanticizes a colonial past while sidelining the people and cultures who shape this place today. Fiesta is part of our identity — and for better or worse, it reflects our community’s values.
It’s time for Old Spanish Days to evolve into a true celebration of Santa Barbara — not just Spanish nostalgia, but a reflection of the land, the Chumash people, and the multicultural richness of our community.
What people love most — Fiesta Pequeña, parades, music, dancing, and cascarones — can and should remain. But it’s time to broaden the circle, invite more Indigenous and immigrant stories, and ensure we’re celebrating with our whole community, not just a sliver of our past.
Reimagining Fiesta wouldn’t erase history. It would honor more of it, while better celebrating where we live and who we are.
It’s time for a new name that reflects the spirit of this city, today.
The Old Spanish Days are long gone.
¡Viva Santa Barbara!
