A community altar, or ofrenda, is displayed at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024 hosted by the Chicano Student Programs at University California Riverside during the weekly student organizations fair on October 30, 2024. This day of remembrance included a performance by Conjunto Meraki as well as altars– which organizers encouraged UCR students to participate in by setting up one of their own– to honor their antepasados (ancestors) or by contributing to the community altar.
A community altar, or ofrenda, is displayed at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024 hosted by the Chicano Student Programs at University California Riverside during the weekly student organizations fair on October 30, 2024. This day of remembrance included a performance by Conjunto Meraki as well as altars– which organizers encouraged UCR students to participate in by setting up one of their own– to honor their antepasados (ancestors) or by contributing to the community altar. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)

Overview: The University California Riverside celebrated Día De Los Muertos with a live performance by Inland Empire-based band, Conjunto Meraki, and a community altar. The holiday, which originated in Mexico, is a time for students to honor their deceased relatives. The celebration included live music, dancing, and altars with favorite items and foods of the deceased. The event was part of the weekly student fair, which featured booths from various student organizations and clubs.

Aryana Noroozi

Each Wednesday under the University of California, Riverside Bell Tower, students gather for an activities fair filled with booths from various student organizations and clubs. Wednesday, Oct. 30 was extra lively as students gathered for an early celebration of Día De Los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead. 

The holiday, which fell on Nov. 1st through Nov. 2nd this year, involves the community gathering to pay respect to the deceased. Día De Los Muertos started in Mexico and dates back to the time of the Aztec Empire. Today, thousands of communities host  celebrations across Southern California. Traditions of this holiday include creating custom altars, known as an ofrenda, with favorite items and foods of the deceased to honor passed relatives, calaveras and marigold flowers known as cempazúchitl, as well as live music and dance. 

Check out the Black Voice News coverage of this event which featured live music from Inland Empire-based father and daughter band, Conjunto Meraki, and dancing and celebration from by students during the standing and diverse, weekly student fair.

Students gather and dance as Inland Empire-based father and daughter band, Conjunto Meraki, performs at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration hosted by the Chicano Student Programs at University California Riverside during the weekly student organizations fair on October 30, 2024. This day of remembrance included a performance by Conjunto Meraki as well as altars– which organizers encouraged UCR students to participate in by setting up one of their own– to honor their antepasados (ancestors) or by contributing to the community altar. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
Students browse items at Cultura Aztecas, an Inland Empire-based vendor, selling merchandise at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
Students browse items at Cultura Aztecas at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
Students pass by tables for various student organizations, including the Vietnamese Student Organization, during the weekly student fair where the Día De Los Muertos Celebration was held on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
Students dance to live music by Conjunto Meraki at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
Students dance to live music by Conjunto Meraki at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
Inland Empire-based father and daughter band, Conjunto Meraki, performs at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration hosted by the Chicano Student Programs at University California Riverside during the weekly student organizations fair on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
A student distributes fliers at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
A woman takes a photo of the community altar or ofrenda, displayed at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)
A community altar or ofrenda displays images of deceased loved ones at the Día De Los Muertos Celebration on October 30, 2024. (Aryana Noroozi for Black Voice News/ CatchLight Local)

Black Voice News photojournalist Aryana Noroozi was born in San Diego, California and graduated with a master’s degree from The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Her love for visual storytelling led her to document immigrant and deportee communities and those struggling with addiction. She was a 2020 Pulitzer Center Crisis Reporting Fellow and a GroundTruth Project Migration Fellow. She is currently a CatchLight/Report for America corps member employed by Black Voice News. You can learn more about her at aryananoroozi.com. You can email her at aryana@blackvoicenews.com.