Two Iowa Latino festivals were canceled this week in the wake of Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts's murder. Hispanics United for Perry (HUP) of Perry, Iowa, announced Thursday that it would indefinitely postpone the annual ¡Viva Perry! Latino Festival that was scheduled to be held Saturday, The Perry News reported. ADVERTISEMENT “In making this decision, we considered all the work that went into planning and promoting that has already occurred,” HUP President Rosa Gonzalez said. “We apologize for any inconvenience to all who made plans to attend the festival. It is hard to cancel a joyous event celebrating the Latino heritage of many of Perry’s residents.” It is unclear if or when the festival will be rescheduled. A similar festival to be held in Iowa City has also been canceled, KCCI 8 News reported Friday. “This tragic event should be a reason to work even harder to eliminate gender-based violence; we are mourning as everybody the loss of Mollie Tibbetts, Sadie Alvarado and all the women that have lost their lives in a way that it is difficult to understand and assimilate,” Iowa City Latino Festival said in a statement. The announcements follow the arrest of Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24, who was charged this week in connection with Tibbetts's murder. Law enforcement has identified him as an undocumented immigrant, but his lawyer has disputed that claim. Tibbetts's body was found this week after having been missing for more than a month. She had disappeared while jogging in the town of Brooklyn, Iowa. Her cause of death in a preliminary report was listed as a "homicide resulting from multiple sharp force injuries," the Iowa State Medical Examiner told CNN. Mary Murphy, a member of the HUP board, told the newspaper that the decision to cancel the event “came down to safety.” The anti-immigrant “fury” following Tibbetts's death and the arrest of her alleged murderer became cause for concern, Murphy said. Tibbetts's death has reignited the immigration debate, with President Trump Donald TrumpTrump lashes out after grand jury seated for New York criminal probe Schumer tees up vote on Jan. 6 commission bill Senators struggle to save Jan. 6 commission MORE holding up her murder as a call for stricter immigration laws. "[Tibbetts] was killed by a horrible person that came in from Mexico, illegally here, found by [Immigration and Customs Enforcement], our great ICE who’s abused by the Democrats and the left, and without them you might not be sitting here so comfortably right now," Trump told "Fox & Friends" host Ainsley Earhardt during an interview that aired Thursday. "I just think it's so sad. We're building the wall. It's already started. … The wall is going up. A lot of people don't know that. I'd like to build it even faster, but dealing with the Democrats is very tough," Trump said. Rivera’s attorney Allen Richards has denied that his client was in the country illegally and called Trump “sad and sorry” for weighing in on the matter and potentially tainting a jury selection. A few members of Tibbetts’s family have appeared to push back on the immigration rhetoric surrounding the student’s death. Samantha Lucas, Tibbetts's second cousin, said the slain student would not want her death to be used as “fuel against undocumented immigrants.”<doc-sep>Hide Transcript Show Transcript WEBVTT STREETS WERE SET TO BE FILLED WITH PEOPLE AND MUSIC, BUT NOW IN LIGHT OF UPDATES IN THE MOLLIE TIBBETTS INVESTIGATION, A BELOVED LATINO FESTIVAL HAS BEEN POSTPONED. >> I WAS VERY UPSET, I DIDN’T REALIZE HOW ONE LITTLE THING COULD TRIGGER OUR WHOL COMMUNITY. LAUREN: THE MAN WHO ENTERED THE UNITED STATES ILLEGALLY, CHARGED WITH THE MURDER OF MOLLIE TIBBETTS, HAS CAST A SHADOW ACROSS LATINO COMMUNITIES. >> JUST HOPING EVERYONE WHO LOOKS IN THEIR HEARTS CAN SEE, WE’RE NOT LIKE THAT. LAUREN: IT IS FEARS THAT THEY WILL NOT, I HISPANICS UNITED FOR PERRY, THAT CAUSED THEM TO POSTPONE THE VIVA PERRY FESTIVAL. >> IT WAS NOT AN EASY DECISION TO MAKE. GIVEN THE EVENTS THIS WEEK, IT WAS NOT AN OPPORTUNE TIME TO HAVE A CELEBRATION >> WE SOLD OUT A LOT. LAUREN: BUT ASK ANYONE, AT CASA DE ORO DOWNTOWN. >> I DON’T THINK ITS RIGHT THAT PEOPLE ARE BLAMING, ONE RACE LAUREN: FOR THE PAST 15 YEARS THE FESTIVAL FLOURISHED ON 2ND STREET. >> NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE TO CANCEL THE LATINO FESTVAL, I THOUGHT IT WAS BECAUSE OF THE WEATHER. LAUREN: RESIDENTS DISMAYED, WHO DESCRIBED THEIR TOWN AS FAR FROM RACIST. >> ON FACEBOOK THIS MORNING SOMEONE SAID, WELL, IF HE HADN’T BEEN IN THE UNITED STATES EVEN, IT WOULDN’T HAVE HAPPENED. IF YOU QUESTION THAT YOU HAVE TO QUESTION A LIFETIME OF WHY ANYBODY KILLS ANYBODY. LAUREN: THERE MAY NO LONGER BE A FESTIVAL, BUT THERE WILL BE A SHOW OF SUPPORT ON 2ND STREET HERE IN PERRY ON SATURDAY AT NOON. THAT WILL BE FOR THE LATIN Advertisement Latino festivals postponed in light of Mollie Tibbetts’ death Share Shares Copy Link Copy The city of Perry has decided to cancel its annual Latino Festival this weekend out of respect for Mollie Tibbetts.Prosecutors say Tibbetts was murdered by 24-year-old Cristhian Rivera, a Mexican-national in the United States illegally.On Saturday these streets were set to be filled with people and music, but now, in light of updates in the Mollie Tibbetts investigation, a beloved Latino festival has been postponed. "I was very upset," Perry resident Benito Remirez said. "I didn't realize how one little thing could trigger our whole community. "The man who entered the United States Illegally - charged with the murder of Mollie Tibbetts - has cast a shadow across Latino communities. "Just hoping everyone who looks in their hearts can see, we're not like that," Remirez said.But due to fear that they won't, Hispanics United for Perry decidedto postpone the ¡Viva Perry! Latino Festival. "It was not an easy decision to make," said John Wolseth, board member for Hispanics United for Perry. "Given the events this week, it was not an opportune time to have a celebration. "But ask anyone at Casa De Oro downtown. "I don't think it's right that people are blaming, one race," Perry resident Kelley Glenn said.For the past 15 years the festival flourished on 2nd Street. "Never happened before to cancel the Latino festval," Perry resident Salvadore Lepe said. "I thought it was because of the weather. "Residents describe their town as far from racist. "On Facebook this morning, someone said, well if he hadn't been in the United States illegally it wouldn't have happened," Glenn said. "And if you question that you have to question a lifetime of why anybody kills anybody. "The Perry Latino Festival will be rescheduled but organizers have not yet set a date.The organizers in Perry say it was Iowa City's decision to postpone its Latino Festival, set for this weekend, that inspired them.The Iowa City group released this statement Friday: "The murder of Mollie Tibbetts, a student at the University of Iowa, impacted the whole community. "The Festival organizers and the Latino community wish to send a message of respect and solidarity to her family and friends. "KCCI contacted the organizers of next month's annual Des Moines Latino Festival. They tell us the event in the Western Gateway park will take place as scheduled on Sept. 22 and 23.<doc-sep>
At least two Iowa festivals dedicated to Latino heritage and scheduled for this weekend were called off in the days after authorities charged a Mexican man they say was in the United States illegally with murder in the abduction and death of Mollie Tibbetts. Manny Galvez, organizer of the Iowa City Latino Festival, said the decision to postpone Saturday's event was based on "respect for Mollie, her family and friends." He also cited heated rhetoric about Hispanics. A similar festival in Perry in central Iowa was canceled as well. Tibbetts, 20, was a University of Iowa student from Brooklyn. She was found dead Tuesday after a month-long search that drew international headlines. Police arrested and charged farmhand Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24, in connection with her death. Federal officials say Rivera was in the country illegally. His lawyer has denied that claim, but has not provided documentation to support it Galvez said festival organizers haven't received any direct threats, but social media posts such as those encouraging people to "hunt illegals in Iowa" have raised concerns. "No one at this festival was going to be prepared for any kind of incident," Galvez said. "People are scared." Debate over Rivera's legal status and its implications for national policy raged for much of the week: A telephone poll suggested that a Democratic candidate for Congress favors immigration policies that made deaths like Tibbetts' more likely. Leaders of a conservative University of Iowa student group wrote on Twitter that suggestions that a forum on immigration be held in Iowa City were "in poor taste" and that such a forum would "exploit the death of a Hawkeye to suit a political agenda." Within a day of police charging Rivera, President Donald Trump weighed in at a rally and on Twitter, saying more needed to be done to combat illegal immigration. Iowa City Police Department spokesman Sgt. Derek Frank said Friday that police do increase their presence in and around downtown during similar festival events. This weekend's Viva Perry Latino Festival in Perry was also canceled this week, according to the Perry News. Organizers could not be reached for comment. Frank said he was not aware of any reported incidents or hate crimes related to Tibbetts' death and Rivera's arrest. Galvez said he and other festival organizers want to respect the memory of Tibbetts and those mourning her death. "This is no time for a party. The pain people are feeling with her loss, it's too real for us. Her friends, her professors, are here in town," Galvez said. "The most important thing is to respect the pain of these people." Galvez added that the festival likely will be rescheduled for Sept. 22. The Latino Heritage Festival, a larger event held in Des Moines every September, will be held as scheduled Sept. 22-23, organizers said Friday. “Our hearts and prayers go out to Mollie’s family and friends and to all of those who were affected by the tragic loss of her,” said festival organizer Joe Gonzalez in a news release. “This event embodies positivity and attempts to unite all by bringing together more than 10,000 people each year regardless of their age, race, ethnicity, creed or gender to learn about and celebrate our varied Latin cultures.” Reach Zach Berg at 319-887-5412, zberg@press-citizen.com or follow him on Twitter at @ZacharyBerg.