Lowriders in San Jose celebrate Cinco de Mayo with triumphant parade

SAN JOSE -- Cinco De Mayo celebrations occur in cities across the Bay Area but, this year, East San Jose got one of its own. As the birthplace of the lowrider culture in Northern California, Sunday's parade featured hundreds of the tricked-out cars that have come to symbolize their community.

A column of large, bright-colored, classic cars cruised along King Road past delighted parade onlookers.

"This is our culture, lowriding culture, Chicano culture!" said Larry Renteria. "Like, this is East Side -- Story and King! -- this is epic! ... This is it right here! You're in the Mecca!"

Lowriders -- flashy, hydraulics-enhanced, rolling works of art -- dominated the parade that ended at the corner of King and Story Road. It is a place known for decades as the center of the universe for the Chicano car culture in Northern California.

It's also been the center of Tommy Valenzuela's family life. He spent years building his beloved '65 Chevy Impala SS convertible, sometimes having to choose between paying the light bill or the chrome bill. The chrome usually won out.

"For me, it's personal," Tommy said. "I built it for me and my family. People have always tried to buy it off me. I just can't let this one go ... I raised my family doing this."

It may be hereditary because every member of the family has now built out a car, including Valenzuela's daughter, Lovina. Her bright blue Chevy Caprice has some pink in the pinstriping to establish it as a "girl's car."

"It's been a family tradition since I can remember," Lovina said. "I grew to love it and that's why I decided to build my car so, that way, I can be rolling with my dad."

Many of the cars have come to represent family as well as the culture but some in San Jose saw the cars as a threat and cruising was banned in the 1980s, driving a wedge between the city and its Latino residents.

Cristina Martinez remembers the nights she spent cruising with friends on Story and King as a young woman.

"It kind of got taken away and I just felt like they allowed the Vietnamese to have theirs -- to pop their fireworks and do all their things. But they took our culture away and now they're finally allowing it to come back," she said.

In 2022, the San Jose repealed the ban on cruising. On Sunday, as the lowriders gathered at Story and King, it felt as if there was a chance that some fences were being mended.

"I think the relationship between the culture is starting to come about with the police," Valenzuela said. "They're accepting more. They're understanding that a lot of these guys that have these cars are not out doing bad things, you know? We all have jobs, we've got businesses."

Back out at the parade, Larry Renteria was feeling hopeful about the future.

"Lowriding is part of our culture," he said. "It's still here, it's still alive. And it's thriving, you know? Man, it's a great thing. It's a positive thing."

While others remember Cinco de Mayo for Mexico's victorious battle with France, the East San Jose lowriders get to celebrate May 5 for a victory of their own.