Beyond día de los muertos: The believers of Santa Muerte in Veracruz

https://www.npr.org/sections/pictureshow/2022/11/02/ [login to see] /beyond-dia-de-los-muertos-the-believers-of-santa-muerte-in-veracruz
Photojournalist Héctor Quintanar has documented a different tradition that takes place in Coatepec, Veracruz during the Day of the Dead celebrations in México. This is a glimpse of last year's festival dedicated to the Santa Muerte.

Coatepec, Veracruz, is famous for being a coffee-growing town in the Sierra Veracruzana. Tourism has grown substantially in recent years due to its cultural attractions and open spaces. Majority Catholic, the town has a deep reverence for the Saint, San Jerónimo, to whom the construction of the main parish is dedicated, in a 17th-century building where believers carry out processions every year.

However, for a few years, another movement has taken root in populations outside the mainstream that directly infringes on the widely accepted Catholic beliefs: The cult of Santa Muerte.