BILLINGS A student-led Cinco de Mayo celebration on Saturday is highlighting Billings' growing Hispanic population and a renewed push for cultural visibility.Raza Unida, a club run through Billings schools with around a dozen m embers, hosted its second Cinco de Mayo celebration at South Park. The event also served as a fundraiser to help members take a cultural and educational trip to Denver.Watch the story here: Student-led Cinco de Mayo celebration highlights growing Hispanic presence in BillingsFounded to connect Hispanic students in the district and promote pride in their heritage, the club has operated for 5 years and has hosted community events for Da de los Muertos and Cinco de Mayo. It also aims to teach others in the community about Latino culture.For the club's adviser, Alyssia Nava, the celebration carries a deeper purpose."Growing up here in Billings, as I said before, there has not been that much representation of our Latino community," said Nava. "We're really trying to show that there is Latinos here, and that we do have a lot more to offer. That effort is gaining traction. At last years event, Local auto body and custom paint artist Ray Nava, Alyssia's brother, painted a lowrider mural titled Rooted in the South Side, Dreaming Under the Big Sky. Nava said it drew attention from across the city and said the exposure led to new opportunities, including commissions from local businesses.Since I've completed this, it's actually been recognized a lot on Facebook groups, like the Billings, Montana, As She Was group," said Ray Nava. "The owner of a new Mexican restaurant on the South Side got a hold of me to do a mural for him as well, so it's kind of taken off."Related: New Billings South Side mural honors Hispanic culture through lowrider artRava said he has noticed perception shift as low-rider art becomes more visible in Billings.It's basically gone from non-existent to popping up everywhere now, and I love it," said Nava. "People have a more appreciation of art, so they can look at it and be like, 'Wow, that's just not some graffiti, that actually means something to somebody,' and it's representing a lot more than just a picture on a wall." For students, the impact is often personal. Ysabelle Ruiz, a Mexican American student at West High School and club president, said the group has helped rebuild a sense of community that they felt had faded in recent years."For a really long time, things like fiestas have brought the community together, but there was kind of a lull for a bit there," said Ruiz. "We started doing more traditional stuff, like the Cinco de Mayo and the Dia de los Muertos (events), so it's just about bringing back the community that was kind of lost for a few years there.Ruiz said the club has also given her something she lacked growing up.Growing up, I didn't have a ton of Latino friends," she said. "It's nice to just see more people like me and be able to get together in a community.Related: Billings students celebrate Da de los Muertos while building pride in Hispanic heritageOther students echoed that sentiment, saying events like this offer a rare opportunity to connect with their culture in Montana. It was nice joining, getting surrounded by my culture, especially because in Montana, there's not really a lot of diversity for Latinos," said Giselle Saucedo, a Mexican American student who recently moved from California. "I think it's nice to do these events and bring people together, like Latinos, to show people our culture, our food, our traditions, and I think it's very important to embrace that."It's good to do these things so people can get experience in the culture and get educated on it, said club member Maycee Wilken.While visibility is increasing, organizers emphasize that the Hispanic community in Billings is not new. The South Side has long been home to a significant and historic Hispanic population, and the longest-running event in the city, the Mexican Fiesta, has operated for over 70 years. But the population continues to grow.Related: Viva La Fiesta!: Museum exhibit celebrates 70 years of Hispanic heritage in BillingsAccording to U.S. Census data, Billings' Hispanic population now sits at an estimated 7 percent, up more than 10 percent since 2020. The city's overall population was an estimated 117,116 in 2020, and U.S. Census data estimates it has since surpassed 121,000, a 3.7 percent increase.I definitely think that Billings as a whole has grown, especially when it comes to Latinos. When I was younger, the only Latinos that you could find here were on the South Side, and primarily they were all my family," said Alyssia Nava. "So to see that people are coming in from California, from the West just in general, everywhere, it's definitely awesome. That growth is reflected in the city's food and business landscape. Just under 10 Mexican or Hispanic restaurants have opened in the past few years, including Santera, El Buen Sazn, and La Morenita. Stores such as Abarrote Asuncion and Colima de Mis Amores have expanded Hispanic food, bakery, and specialty goods options.Related: New Billings South Side restaurant brings family flavor, big dreams to the table"You see new restaurants popping up all the time, new taco trucks, so I like seeing it growing and just seeing the representation come out," said Tanisha Rodriguez, who was serving food at Saturday's event with her business, Chachos.Rodriguez said the growth is fueling her own dreams. She is working to launch Chachos into a food truck business, serving dishes she grew up making with her family."Billings is kind of becoming a melting pot," she said. "Lots of different cultures coming together and ready just to kind of show out and show what we have." Students with Raza Unida said their work is about both preserving culture and making sure it is seen."A lot of Latino youth around here don't get to see their culture as much and don't get to see people who look like them celebrating and just having fun as much," said Ruiz. "I think it's really important to introduce them to their culture and make sure they know where they come from, and that they have nothing to be ashamed of from being Latino."Those in attendance said the message of visibility and belonging is at the heart of what they do. While population is growing, the community has always been here."There's a lot more than just tacos to us," said Ray Nava. "It has always been here, but now, I feel like other people have seen it now, and now that it's just taken off." For the students of Raza Unida, the work is about rebuilding something that never fully leftfor a new generation to hold onto their traditions, and for older community members to know they haven't been forgotten."I've stumbled upon a lot of people that are like, 'We miss the culture. We come here and there's none, but then we hear of your small events and it makes us feel at home a little bit,' so it's nice," said Alyssia Nava. ...read more read less