VivirLatino

Don't Panic! It's Time to Celebrate Being Hispanic

09:07 H | Topics: Events - History - Latin America

Yes it's that time of year again. I admit that I hate the term "Hispanic" and feel it does little to express my experience growing up in the United States as a Nuyorican but I guess I should be happy that Hispanic Heritage Month, which kicks off officially today, is a full 30 days through October 15th. According to Wikipedia:

National Hispanic Heritage Month is a period to recognize the contributions of Hispanic Americans to the United States and to celebrate Hispanic heritage and culture. The observation started in 1968 as National Hispanic Heritage Week and was expanded in 1988 to cover a 30-day period starting on September 15 and ending on October 15. It was enacted into law on August 17, 1988 on the approval of Public Law 100-402.

"September 15 was chosen as the starting point for the celebration because it is the anniversary of independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on September 16 and September 18, respectively.

Another thing that bugs me about this 30 day period is that it allows non-Latino institutions to pay lip service to the diverse Latino community for a short period of time while essentially ignoring us the rest of the year. Additionally Hispanic Heritage Month has the tendency to lump all Latino groups together. For example offering a taco special on your menu in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month hardly does a thing for my Chilean kids. I won't even get into the fact that Hispanic Heritage Month ends around celebrations surrounding a certain lost Italian.

Here at VivirLatino, we celebrate our Latino identity and roots everyday but this year is especially important to us as it will mark the one year anniversary of our represnting on the internet.
So wave your flags, cook your comidas tipicas, and sing your national anthems - not in English only of course. Just don't let it stop on October 15th.

Info via / Wikipedia

Image Via / Franciscans International

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