Despite their team losing the semifinals of the World Cup Tuesday, French fans nearly 5,000 miles from their native country joined Dallas’ French community in Bishop Arts to celebrate Bastille Day.
The historic Oak Cliff neighborhood was enlivened by French music and vendors for Bastille on Bishop, the neighborhood’ annual French festival that aimed to recreate the legendary 1.9-kilometer-long Champs-Élysées in Paris for the night, according to the event description.
This year, the celebration unfolded simultaneously alongside one of the biggest matches in international soccer. France took a staggering loss to Spain, but French fans still migrated to the Bishop Arts area to commemorate their culture.
Bastille Day is a national holiday in France observed annually on July 14. It commemorates the 1789 storming of the military fortress and prison Bastille, a pivotal moment marking the beginning of the French Revolution that overthrew France’s gilded monarchy and feudal system.
Bishop Arts has deep French roots that trace back to the mid-1800s, as a part of Oak Cliff was a French settlement called “Le Reunion” in its earliest days. Though the settlement only functioned for about 18 months, it established culture in the neighborhood.
Earlier in the day, Pierre Jacobson, 40, had hoped the celebration would include both Bastille Day and a French victory.
Jacobson had said earlier today he normally attends Bishop Arts’ Bastille Day celebration. This year, however, he landed tickets to the game at Dallas Stadium, witnessing the staggering loss.
“Hopefully, if we can celebrate both a victory and Bastille Day at the same time, it would be great,” Jacobson said earlier today. “There is another layer, which is the 250th anniversary of the United States. As a Franco-American, I think it adds a layer of emotions because it’s a cross of two histories.”
Around 9 p.m. the revelry winded down as people of all ages winded through the corded off street, closed to cars. The trees were adorned with sparkling string lights that cast a glow on the streets. Vendors huddled under propped up tents, and despite sadness after the game, the celebration of France’s culture continued.