VivirLatino

The Latino Happiness Bonus

13:25 H | Topics: Society

My friend Oso tipped me off to a very interesting article -- about happiness of all things -- which highlights research that suggests Latinos are happier than non-Latinos:

One of the most intriguing finds to come out of the research so far is that Latin Americans consistently rank happier in life-satisfaction surveys than would otherwise be expected, given that many in the region live in poverty. In an in-depth study of 120,000 people in 82 nations, the World Values Survey found what one researcher dubbed "the Latino bonus.""

That really plays into that "fiesta salsa piñata" stereotype I hate, so overused by marketers, politicians and other idiots. Some of the most morose people I know are Latinos. If any of this to be believed, what is the common thread that would tie Latinos of so many different backgrounds together? What creates this phenomena that the article qualifies as the "Latino bonus"? Faith? 500 years of resilience?

Sister Ann Kendrick sees it daily in her community. A Roman Catholic nun, she has spent about 35 years helping the poor - mostly immigrants from Latin America - through the Office for Farmworker Ministry in Apopka.

"I'll put five Hispanic women in my van to go to Orlando, and they can make a party along the way," she said."I'll put five Hispanic women in my van to go to Orlando, and they can make a party along the way," she said."They get to laughing and telling jokes and carrying on. And there might even be some heavy discussion about something tough - like trouble in their marriage or one of their kids being in jail - but there's a level of energy to their conversation. They generate a sense of connection that just feels good."

In fact, she says, one of the happiest scenes she ever witnessed was years ago at a refugee camp along the border of Honduras, where 4,000 Salvadorans had fled with virtually nothing.

While this may be true in some cases, and there is no doubting that underprivileged or devastated communities of all ethnicities find ways to be "happy" in the face of extreme circumstances, anecdotes like this further stereotype Latinos as only a fun-loving, devil-may-care community. I take issue with this because to me this suggests a group that is non-thinking and incapable of recognizing hardship or suffering for what it is.

Mexican pop culture both supports this stereotype and debunks it. In looking at Posada's "calavera" art you see the side of Mexican culture that laughs in the face of death. But if you turn your attention to music, for example, you'll find an absence of the "la vida es un carnaval" mentality, in the form of music that is the ultimate expression of suffering and hardship: corridos, rancheras, boleros, etc.

To fall back on a cliché, nothing is ever that black and white.

Via / Happiness Policy and Fort Wayne.com

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• Obama vs. Hillary : The Universal Health Care B.S. (Wednesday, Feb 27 2008)
• Undocumented Not the Burden Anti-Immigrant Advocates Make Them Out to Be (Tuesday, Nov 27 2007)