Commentary: The joy of Mexico's World Cup soccer triumph in the Trump era

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Brenda Jaimes pushed her way through an ecstatic crowd in downtown Santa Ana Thursday night, stopping in the middle of Fourth Street and calling attention to herself by shouting, “Me! Me!”An hour earlier, Mexico beat South Korea 1-0 in the World Cup.Jaimes, a 22-year-old Santa Ana resident, was one of thousands of people who crowded into the neighborhood’s many bars and restaurants to watch the thrilling victory then spilled onto the streets to party.Fans blew horns and spun noisemakers, chanting “México!” and “¡Sí se puede!” They brandished the Mexican flag seemingly everywhere: on banners, painted on cheeks, emblazoned on Jaimes’ tube top.

They stood on the back of trucks and boogied.An Orange County Fire Authority truck flashed its sirens to cheers.A line of drivers cruised down Fourth Street — the historic cultural and economic heart of Latino Orange County — to high-five the crowd and let people shake their cars as if everyone was inside a bounce house.Jaimes wanted something more dramatic.

Sports Mexico’s defense held off a spirited final push by South Korea, earning a 1-0 win to advance to the knockout round.She lay down in the arms of some men wearing green Mexico soccer jerseys.They counted to three, launched her a good 8 feet upward, then effortlessly caught the laughing Jaimes.Scenes like this replicated themselves across Southern California after the match, from Koreatown to Boyle Heights to Pacoima to Huntington Park — really, anywhere with a big Latino population.

It happens any time Mexico wins big in soccer.But the pachanga was even more pronounced in Santa Ana.A year earlier, Fourth Street was empty.

Federal immigration agents were seizing people across the city.The National Guard set up a roadblock complete with an armed Humvee for over a month, just a block away from where Jaimes and so many others celebrated.One of the most Latino...