Honoring the dead during the 17th Duluth All Souls Night

Saturday evening, community members gathered tonight to remember those who died during the 17th Duluth All Souls Night celebration.

Duluth All Souls Night (DASN), created by Mary Plaster, is organized through the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council and Clean Water Land and Legacy Amendment. The event respects and honors loved ones who have passed away – and brings light to make the world a better place.

“We can come together in community and say, ‘Yes, these are our agreements. This is the way we come together, and we are a community.” And so we have things in common. So it is very important. Showing each other that this is our culture, this is how we celebrate, this is how we respect our ancestors. And we see, “Oh, that’s different.” But this is also the same,” says DASN volunteer Louisa Posada-Eckstine.

It is believed that All Souls’ Day occurs when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest. Many who celebrate this leave gifts and meals for those they have lost to take with them into the afterlife.

“This is when we throw them a party. We give them spirits like their favorite drink, apple cider, tequila, hot chocolate, whatever they want. What was their favorite food? Let’s put it in front of them and make a spirit dish. This is how we celebrate them. We make our friends. We hung their pictures. And again, all cultures have some form of celebrating their ancestors,” Posada-Eckstine said.

Click here for more information about Duluth All Souls Night.