Cinco De Mayo In Trump Era Leaves Mexican-Americans Torn

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A 25-year-old Albuquerque woman says she's reluctant to take part in Cinco de Mayo festivities this year as President Donald Trump steps up federal immigration enforcement and supporters back his call for the building of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Yazmin Irazoqui Ruiz isn't alone.

Trump's immigration policies and rhetoric are leaving some Mexican Americans and immigrants feeling at odds with a holiday they already thought was appropriated by beer and liquor companies, event promoters and bars.

Latino activists and scholars say that ambivalence is bolstered by the hazy history of Cinco de Mayo and by stereotypes exploited by marketers.

Ruiz is a Mexican-born medical student who left for the U.S. as a child and celebrates the day to honor a homeland she hardly remembers.