So the topic on everyone’s mind in Hollywood today is just how many Latinos (yes, I’m including Penelope) are nominated for an Academy Award this year. While this may be refreshing for some Oscar followers, I have to say that it is about time that we level off the playing field a bit.

It all started with Rita Moreno in 1961, winning for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Anita in West Side Story. Nobody knew that it would be years, make that decades, before another Latino graced the red carpet nominated for an Oscar, let alone win one.

It got to a point where no Latinos were ever recognized for their acting. Even Cher and Oprah Winfrey were being honored, but nope, no Latinos. Finally, in 1990, we saw Andy Garcia nominated for his role in Godfather III only to be followed up a few years later by Rosie Perez in 1993 for her portrayal in the film Fearless. They didn’t win, but that didn’t matter so much. Honest.

1998, Fernanda Montenegro is nominated for Central do Brasil, but no win. In 2000, Javier Bardem gets a nomination for Best Actor for Before Night Falls, but, again, no win. Salma Hayek gets nominated in 2002 for Frida, still no win. Enter Benicio Del Toro with a victory win for his role in Traffic in 2000 and to prove that he is a prominent player in Hollywood, he gets nominated again in 2003 for 21 Grams. In 2004, we saw Catalina Sandino Moreno nominated for the Best Actress Award, but the backlash began. Many insiders and critics believed that she wasn’t acting, because she basically played herself. Right, I almost forgot that before becoming an actress, Catalina was a drug mule. Where do they come up with this stuff?

Who knew that 2007 would be the year where many Latino names would be announced, and by a Latina! Of course, congratulations go out to everyone who was nominated regardless of ethnicity, race, sex, age, you know the rest. It’s just that today, as Latinos, there is a bit more pride pumping through our veins. Felicitaciones nominados!