The 101st annual Mexican Independence Day parade went on peacefully Sunday in East Chicago in the face of heightened federal immigration enforcement nationwide.

“Can’t nobody steal our joy,” Mayor Anthony Copeland said just as he hopped into a parade car. “This country is made of immigrants.”

Along the route, Mexican flags lined the streets. One float had Ballet Folklorico Yolotzin dancers and was followed at the end with horses.

“As a Mexican, it’s like a family reunion,” said Rolando Ruiz, 48, of Valparaiso.

Sitting at his parents’ home on Parrish Avenue, he said they were going to a neighbor’s cookout. He estimated since the late 1990s, the crowds have become “less and less,” he said.

A lot of that had to do with East Chicago’s population gradually shrinking over the years.

“Peopl

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