A quinceañera is meant to be all sparkle — dresses, dancing and family gathered to celebrate a girl stepping into womanhood. But as fears of immigration enforcement ripple through Los Angeles, some families are canceling celebrations and guests are declining invitations.
Take a listen as reporter Maricruz Villalobos follows one family determined to hold onto tradition in a moment of uncertainty.
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This story was produced by our partners at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, with reporting by student journalist Maricruz Villalobos.
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[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Turning fifteen is one of the most magical times for a young Latina. Or actually, it’s the most stressful. As a retired teenage girl, I can tell you that turning fifteen comes with a lot of challenges. From the hormonal frenzy to choosing a theme for your quince to making sure you’re keeping up good grades in school, there are many challenges that come with the age.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] This is your coming of age party, and no, not like the ones you see in the movies where the teens get drunk, and the parents are nowhere to be found.
[Unknown speaker]: [inaudible] So glad you came, and you brought a friend. Hi.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] For this party, your parents are all over it. From madrinas to padrinos, most of your family has a hand in making this day special. I remember my quince and how much fun I had planning it with my mom.
We were up all night for weeks making arreglos or table arrangements and even discussing who should sit where to avoid an outburst of family drama.
What stayed with me the most is the religious ceremony. My abuelita was a devout Catholic, so I’ve always felt like being religious has tied me to my culture. Tied me to her.
Her dementia was progressing quickly so this was going to be one of the last of my major life events where she’d be able to fully participate. We both walked hand in hand to the Virgen to give her our offering, my ramo, or my bouquet.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] A Quinceañera is much more than lavish parties and sparkly dresses. It’s about honoring the coming of age of young Latinas.
It’s a frame in time where our families celebrate who we are and who we will become.
But this year is different.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] One of the most beautiful Latina rites of passage is under attack.
[CBS LA] The immigration raids are having a big impact on Quinceañeras across the area. Guests not showing up. Parties cancelled.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] But some families are going forward despite the risk…
[MARIBEL (VANESSA’S DAUGHTER)] I’m not really the type of person who likes big parties…
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] This is Maribel. It’s not her real name. At first, she was hesitant to even speak with me. But her mom talked her into it.
[MARIBEL] … but this time I’m actually pretty excited, and I can’t wait for the day to come so I can enjoy it with my family and friends.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] She just recently chose out her dress for her Quinceañera that’s happening this year.
[MARIBEL] It’s a big, very voluminous dress, actually, and it’s a baby pink or pastel pink — whatever you want to call it — and it has some sparkly embellishments on the skirt and flowers, and it also has a train and a bow in the back.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] I’ve spoken to her mom — we’ll call her Vanessa, because under the circumstances, she can’t use her real name either. She told me that Maribel wasn’t entirely sold on the whole ‘having a quince’ idea until she was able to see some dresses in person.
[MARIBEL] It was a really nice feeling, honestly, because at first I wasn’t really into the whole idea of having a quinceañera. But after seeing all those girls in their big, beautiful dresses, I changed my mind. Plus, they told me the dress was brand new and that I’d be the first person to try it on. That made me a little more excited.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] I asked Maribel what having this party not only means for her but what does it mean for her family?
[MARIBEL] Everyone is excited and happy about the big day, since it will be the first quinceañera our family has ever celebrated — neither my mom, my grandmother, nor my aunt were able to have one.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Now, financial challenges aren’t the only challenges these families face.
[CBS LA] KCAL News reporter Elise Martinez spoke with a party planner in Paramount about the impact on this sacred tradition.
[CBS LA: WILL] It’s a tradition that’s being broken.
[CBS LA: ELISE MARTINEZ] Will Granados is the owner of Quince’s Queen and Event Planning in Paramount. He says immigration enforcement raids are scaring people away from attending Quinceañeras.
[CBS LA: WILL] The customers who are picking up their orders right now, you know, they’re just want to do it after hours. They want to make sure that our door’s closed when they’re in here.
[WILL GRANADOS] …but here we help them decide that in this table right here, how do you want your centerpiece to look like? How do you want your plates? How do you want your linen, right? And all that stuff. So this is where they explore all those ideas.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] I’m sitting with Will Granados’ in his dress shop in Paramount.
Three out of ten of Granados upcoming scheduled Quinceañeras have been postponed to next year or canceled, which he says is due to fear of ICE.
Reception halls meant to fit three hundred now sit half full or completely devoid of guests.
[WILL] And most of these people are people who the Quinceañera holds them dearly in their heart. For example, I had one of my last events, the madrina, who was supposed to give her a necklace, wasn’t there because of that. And the Quinceañera cried. I got emotional. Because she wanted her to be there.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Of course, he’s not the only one feeling emotional. It’s important to have the people who support you be there for your special day.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Tucked away into a hillside neighborhood lies a polished community center. I sit across from Maribel’s mom, Vanessa, who is wearing a sleek black outfit with her striking black hair melting over her shoulders.
We’re under the cement cabana near the light blue pool right by where she’ll have Maribel’s Quinceañera later this year.
[VANESSA] Bueno voy a la cita y eso fue mágico porque…
[VANESSA VO] Well, the dress fitting appointment was magical because I never experienced something like that. They had a heart with her name on it on the couch. Oh and it was pink, which was her favorite color. She comes out with a beautiful dress and says “I don’t need to see anymore mom.”
[VANESSA] Estes el vestido de mi suenos
[VANESSA VO] This is my dream dress.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Vanessa realizes the risks she’s taking. But she wants this for her daughter so badly. Lately, memories have been surging back, of the quince she wasn’t able to have. Vanessa has always dreamed of what her dress would look like. Extravagant and pink. Although she never got the chance to have a Quinceañera due to her living conditions after she migrated from Nicaragua to Venezuela, she is enjoying every bit of the planning process with her daughter.
[VANESSA] Es como curarme yo también de esa niña que quiso vivir esa experiencia porque yo no sé…
[VANESSA VO] It’s like I’m healing my inner child who always wanted a Quinceañera. I was always the girl who dreamed about having her Quince, but my mother couldn’t give me that.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Planning her daughter’s Quince has not only been a healing process for her but also for her mother.
[VANESSA] y mi mamá por último para decirte que Dios es de segunda tercera cuartas y miles de oportunidades porque ninguna de nosotras dos mi mama nos pudo hacer los 15 años…
ENGLISH: My mom, neither of us could have a Quince. We were very poor and my mom gifted my daughter her dress. For me it’s very emotional because what my mother couldn’t do for us she’s doing for her granddaughter. This also gives further opportunity to live out what she couldn’t with her daughters.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Maribel is the first and only granddaughter in the family which makes having this Quinceañera a big deal. They needed all hands on deck and even hired Will Granados, the Quince planner.
[WILL] This whole process is for not only a big party. This is a religious ceremony. It’s a ritual. Where, this is why church is involved, because if you go to a church for a sweet 16, they would normally not do it.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Looking defeated, Granados sets his hands down on the shiny linen. He says none of this crackdown is about trying to preserve so-called traditional values.
[WILL] What I’m saying is that proves to you that it’s not that they want to keep the conservative movement alive. They just don’t like brown people. Because, if they really, if God was their ultimate goal, or like you know, their conservative values of man and a woman, right? And of marriage and the family, what better than Hispanic families?
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] Will’s job has become exponentially more difficult in this climate but he still goes above and beyond for his clients. He’s been helping Vanessa plan out Maribel’s Quince. Vanessa has also spent hours on the phone with her mother going over every detail. She says this experience has really connected her to her mom as she lost her father earlier last year.
[VANESSA] …mi padre falleció ahorita en abril del año pasado del 25…
[VANESSA VO] My father died last April. He also migrated, but he went to Panama. It’s been 10 years since I had seen him, and I didn’t get the chance to see him alive or dead. Honestly, it was so hard. I had just dropped my daughter off at middle school, and my family called me so that I could speak to my dad. He died with me there on the phone. It was horrible, seeing the funeral through FaceTime, was really, really hard
[VANESSA] el entierro por video es muy, muy fuerte…
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] She wasn’t able to visit her father on time because of complicated circumstances with her citizenship.
Vanessa says her father’s only wish was to see his only granddaughter turn 15. After his passing, this celebration took on a whole new meaning for her family.
[VANESSA] Por eso yo le digo a mi hija la fiesta no solo es para mí, para ti, sino también para honrar a tu abuelo que quiso, él quiso vivir y verte.
ENGLISH: That’s why I tell my daughter this party is not just for me, or for you, but also for your grandpa who wanted to live to see you. He also wanted to see my sons graduate. Well, things happen, and God lead us through mysterious ways.
[Maricruz Jr Villalobos] The world full of sparkly dresses and heartfelt traditions is at risk. With immigration enforcement showing no signs of stopping their reign of terror, Latino families have had to find ways to compromise their celebrations out of fear.
But the community is also reclaiming their agency. Specifically, their girlhood. From wearing their hair in trenzas full of colorful moños at protests to visiting Will’s store after hours to pick up their big poofy dresses. e are seeing the community heal from inside out.
[Song]
This story was produced by Maricruz Junior Villalobos for USC Annenberg’s Resilience in the Age of ICE podcast series. Executive producers are Sandy Tolan and Megan Donis. Sound design and mixing by Rebecca Katz and music from Blue Dot Sessions
