This Halloween, Yonkers will welcome its first Latinx punk festival with the debut of Quémalo Punk, taking place Saturday, October 31, 2026 at Yonkers Brewing Co.
Created by Mexican American organizers with deep roots in New York’s DIY punk community, Quémalo was born from a desire to create something that has been missing in Westchester: a festival where Latinx identity, punk music, and culture exist unapologetically in the same space.
Latinx communities have long been part of punk and alternative music, both throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, and across the United States. Yet those stories and contributions are often overlooked in mainstream representations of both punk and Latino culture. Quémalo seeks to celebrate that intersection while building something distinctly rooted in Yonkers, NY.
The inaugural festival will feature Downtown Boys as headliners, ¡Fuakata!, Muelas, Hauasipongo, Rauli V,Los Gueys, Maintenance, We Are Not Our Bodies, L-Punk, and No Weapons. Alongside these punk and alternative acts, free cultural programming will be on full display outdoors, connecting the event to the traditions and communities that inspired it. Plans for the outdoor portion include baile folklórico by Ballet de Tonantzin (traditional Mexican folk dance), Danza Mexica (an Indigenous ceremonial dance tradition rooted in central Mexico), as well as performances by Jarocho, Mariachi, and Cumbia acts. The outdoor cultural programming is planned to be free and open to the community, giving Yonkers residents an opportunity to participate in the celebration regardless of whether they attend the ticketed indoor performances.
“Quémalo Punk is about bringing together all the young Latinx people from Westchester and beyond. We want to bring punk/alt bands from all over the country to Yonkers for the first time. The goal is to connect the huge and unique Latinx populations in Westchester to communities across the country. – Antonio Rodriguez (Co-founder of Quémalo Punk)
“Quémalo is about showing that being Latino and being punk were never two separate things. There is such a rich Latinx punk community, but it’s often overlooked, sometimes even within our own communities. We wanted to create a festival where that part of our culture could be loud, visible, and celebrated right here in Yonkers.” – Arlene “Telly” Vivar-Beairsto (Co-founder of Quémalo Punk)
Quémalo is being organized in partnership with members of the local music and arts community, including The 914 Collective, with the goal of establishing a new annual cultural event in Westchester County.
**QUÉMALO PUNK FEST**
**Saturday, October 31, 2026**
**Yonkers Brewing Co.**
**Yonkers, New York**
Quémalo Punk Fest is Yonkers’ first Latinx punk festival, celebrating punk music, Latin American identity, and community. The festival was created by Antonio Rodriguez and Arlene Vivar-Beairsto, two longtime organizers in New York’s non-profit cultural arts community. Both hold leadership roles with Punk Island NYC, New York City’s longest-running independent music festival. Together, Rodriguez and Vivar-Beairsto bring decades of combined experience in event production, artist booking, community organizing, and independent music. As Mexican American organizers, they created Quémalo to celebrate a part of punk culture that has long existed but is too often overlooked. The festival brings that history and community to the forefront while creating something new in Yonkers. Quémalo is produced in collaboration with The 914 Collective and members of the local music and arts community.
