ST. LOUIS – Monday was a new day in St. Louis with a new meaning.
“I think St. Louis is special to be honest,” Hispanic Festival organizer Elisa Bender said.
Mayor Tishaura Jones, along with members of the Hispanic community, helped raise the Hispanic Heritage flag outside city hall and proclaim Sept. 15 the start of Hispanic Heritage Month in the City of St. Louis.
“It is a long time coming,” Bender told FOX 2.
Bender is a first-generation American with Bolivian roots. She’s helped organize the Hispanic Festival that is happening this weekend in Soulard.
“We’ve got food from all over,” she said. “Of course, Mexico, because everyone wants some tacos, and then Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Colombia, and Honduras.”
The festival, along with Hispanic Heritage Month, seems to be aligning perfectly with new U.S. census data that shows St. Louis boasts one of the biggest growing Hispanic populations in the country.
“It means that people like being here and they want to move here,” Bender said. “I’ve always said there is so much opportunity here.”
Data shows the St. Louis Metro area has added more than 30,000 foreign-born residents between 2022 and 2023. The Hispanic population also ranks fourth among the 30th largest metros in the country for percentage growth.
Elisa, who’s spent her whole life in St. Louis, said seeing the city grow and diversify is exciting.
“It is amazing that people are becoming citizens and immigrating to St. Louis,” she said.
