The Peruvian community in Los Angeles, California organizes itself around a Catholic procession that dates back to the 17^th century. Today, on any weekend in October, you might come across this procession stopping traffic as it makes its way slowly through the streets of Canoga Park, Pico Rivera, or downtown LA.  The focus of the procession is on groups of men in purple robes carrying on their shoulders a large, adorned wooden platform (anda) bearing a large image of the crucified Christ.  The men tremble under its massive weight. Behind them, a brass band plays Peruvian “criollo” music to keep the rhythm of the march. In front, a group of veiled women – also wearing purple – walk backwards singing devotional hymns as they incense the image and the streets. Venders sell anticuchos, choclo, and other Peruvian food.  Participants are reminded of Peru at every turn, as the procession collectively transforms public space through sights, sounds, and smells.

Over 40,000 Peruvian-Americans live in the greater LA area, with the largest concentration in the San Fernando Valley. Though there have been recent efforts to establishing a “Peru Village” in Hollywood, no true geographical center exists for the Peruvian community in the region. In the absence of such a physical cultural center, Peruvians have maintained their connections to each other and to Peru via devotion to el Señor de los Milagros, or the Lord of Miracles.

El Señor de los Milagros, is a Catholic crucifixion image painted by an Angolan slave in the Spanish colonial capital of Lima in the mid-17^th century. After surviving a massive earthquake in 1655, the image was said to be imbued with supernatural qualities. Over the centuries, what began as a procession for poor and black Limeños transformed into a national and later international phenomenon. Peruvian immigrants have established brotherhoods for the Lord of Miracles virtually wherever they have gone, from Tokyo to Rome and beyond. The first procession for the image in the Los Angeles area was held at Saint Elisabeth church the San Fernando Valley in 1984. Since then, devotees throughout the region have established over a dozen different religious brotherhoods organized around venerating their own image of Señor de los Milagros. For Peruvians in Los Angeles, October truly is, “el mes morado”, the month of purple.

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