Photo: Cinco de Mayo, From Mexican Fiesta to Popular U.S. Holiday

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Mexicans celebrate Cinco de Mayo in the town of Puebla during a May 5, 2001, reenactment of their 1862 victory over French troops sent by Emperor Napoleon III.

Often mistaken for Mexican Independence Day in the United States, Cinco de Mayo gained popularity north of the border in the 1960s partly because of a U.S. government effort to reach out to neighboring countries.

Photograph courtesy Susana Gonzalez/Newsmakers/Getty Images

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