Overview El Grito Chicago is a two-day Mexican Independence Day festival on Butler Field in Grant Park, and it closes on Sunday with a free civic ceremony presented by the Consulate General of Mexico in Chicago honoring the grito, the call that launched Mexico's fight for independence. Around it run two days of regional Mexican music, mariachi and ballet folklórico, Chicago food vendors, an artisan market and a Kids Zone. The festival brought the holiday back downtown in 2024 after a ten-year gap, as an organized way to celebrate that did not depend on the unsanctioned car caravans that had filled downtown streets on the holiday weekend. On site Gates run from mid-afternoon to 10 at night. The Mexican Mercadito fills with local businesses and artisans, cultural programming is built with the National Museum of Mexican Art, and the Kombi Bus Dancefloor runs DJs and dancing between sets. The 2026 food lineup drew on Chicago vendors from Tacos El Rey and Carnitas Roldan to Paleteria Los Magos and Windy City Aguas, with a full bar alongside. The Kids Zone carries carnival rides, sports activations and art activities, and children under 10 get in free with a ticketed adult. Amigo tickets add expedited entry, front-stage viewing, a dedicated bar and separate restrooms. In 2026 branded activations and interactive pop-ups ran on the grounds beside the Mercadito and the Kids Zone. Audience It is a family festival built around Chicago's Mexican community, and the food stalls and Mercadito are stocked by Latino vendors from the city. The Sunday ceremony is free, and Telemundo Chicago livestreams it on its digital platforms. Talent and Influencers The 2026 lineup was headlined by Adriel Favela, the Sinaloa-born regional Mexican singer-songwriter, with Código FN, the technobanda group Mi Banda El Mexicano, Emmanuel Cortés and Chicago's Latin Grammy-nominated Mariachi Herencia de México. Selena The Show, a live Juan Gabriel tribute, Chicago's Los de La Homan, Sin Anestesia and El Ejercito Sierreño filled out the bill. Track record The 2024 return to Grant Park drew an estimated 24,000 people. The 2025 edition was called off after federal immigration enforcement began in the Chicago area, and the festival came back to Butler Field in September 2026.