The Fiesta Patrias organizers in Waukegan of the annual traditional Mexican Independence Day Festival 2023 say that the City of Waukegan allegedly attempted to extort at least $6,000 of rendered services, which the Fiesta Patrias Organizing Committee confirmed, the City never provided the services and they should have never been billed for it, according to documents obtained by the organizers.
By H. Nelson Goodson
Hispanic News Network U.S.A.
July 4, 2023
Waukegan, Illinois - On Tuesday, Margaret Carrasco, the President of the Fiesta Patrias Organization, a non-profit organization confirmed that in September, the Fiesta Patrias Organizing Committee (FPOC) will host multiple events from September 1st to September 17, 2023 for the Mexican Independence Day festivities in the City of Waukegan. The FPOC has been organizing and operating the Mexican Independence Parade and Festival for 40 years.
The City of Waukegan denied the FPOC parade permit this year, because according to the City, FPOC allegedly owed $6,000 for rendered services the City was claiming. FPOC applied for the September 17, 2023 parade permit on January 1, 2021 and was denied. Carrasco says, that the FPOC owed at least $3,200 for police service and wanted to pay it off to the City, but the City refused payment until the bill amount was correct, which took seven months. By then, the City of Waukegan approved a Mexican Independence Day parade and festival permit to Puro Futbol, which FPOC was denied the permit.
Carrasco said, "we only had a BALANCE of $3,200 for Police which they billed us in October but the City billed us for an additional $9,000. We had already paid them prior to event approximately $10,000 for City of Waukegan. They charge us $1,800 just in Application FEES."
Carrasco says, that the City did admit that the $6,000 of rendered services was an error, according to correspondence Carrasco received from the City, but by then, the City had approved the parade and festival permit for Puro Futbol, the novice Mexican Independence Day parade and festival organizers. The Puro Futbol business (newspaper) is not registered with the State of Illinois, according to Carrasco. (Waukegan City Council meeting date, 7/3/2023, Fiesta Patrias testimony at time 2:10:29 in video: https://www.youtube.com/live/1iQCZewuorQ)
On Monday night, at the City of Waukegan Council meeting, it was revealed that Waukegan Mayor Ann B. Taylor had taken out an ad with Puro Futbol Newspaper, which was paid by taxpayers, which definitely looked like a political ad and should have been paid by Taylor's political campaign. Carrasco confirmed, that the Mayor Taylor's ad in the Puro Futbol Newspaper was paid by the City.
The operator of the Puro Futbol Newspaper is Oscar Zepeda.
Carrasco also says that the Puro Futbol organizers of the Sunday, September 17, parade and one-day festival hosted in Waukegan do not reside in Waukegan.
Currently, Mayor Taylor and the City of Waukegan Facebook page are promoting the Puro Futbol Mexican Independence Day parade and festival event. It certainly looks like Mayor Taylor and the City of Waukegan favors one Mexican Independence Day event over another, which is a disservice (political suicide for Taylor) to the Mexican-American voting population in Waukegan that elected her to office. The mayor and City should promote all events equally that bring an economic boost to the City instead of favoring one event over the other, unless they were allegedly bought off or receiving a kickback, some might inappropriately imply.
Carrasco says, that the Fiesta Patrias organization will host a Mexican Independence Day Festival and a vehicle Caravan on Sunday, September 17, instead of a parade leading to the festival. The one-day festival will be held at a private property.
The Fiesta Patrias Organizing Committee also confirmed to Hispanic News Network U.S.A. (HNNUSA) that it is "considering legal action at multiple levels for discrimination and racism in Mayor Ann Taylor's administration and also for criminal extortion."
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