Personal Experiences Of Hispanic Americans

Latino/Hispanic Americans cover a much wider demographic then believed. Latino/Hispanic Americans consist of; Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Guatemalan American to name a few. Latino/Hispanic Americans are the largest ethnic group in the United States. The Latino/Hispanic culture is very different than ours. Their culture differs in economics, politics, family traditions, family structure, religion, education, language, fashion, art, music, dancing, and food. As natural born Americans in the United States it is important for us to learn about the different cultures migrating into the United States. Many United States citizens have a hard time understanding other cultures; being culturally insensitive is a common theme in the United

Today, the Hispanic population has grown tremendously over the years. We have watched the Hispanics community growth rate grow faster than any other racial and ethnic group in the nation. The Hispanic culture and community has populated all around the United States, introducing new traditions and customs. I was traveling to different to city in the States, I notice the wide spread growth of Hispanic communities, For Instance in Miami the Cuban and El Salvadoran culture is heavy populate in the area. In New York the Puerto Rican culture is dominating through out the several boroughs. I have come around town and Hispanics are known for their good food, which tends to have more diverse people try new cultural customs. Hispanic or Latino

Throughout this first chapter of Latino Americans the key points in my opinion were the following. Starting with the origin story of the Americas, the book mentions there might not be a definitive starting point because there “500 nations in North America before a European ship ever dropped anchor off the Eastern Seaboard” (Suarez 3). The book from this point on chronologically starts narrating, first about 55 years before Protestant refugees from Mayflower ever stepped on American soil, a Spanish sailor Pedro Menendez de Aviles forced French protestants from their Florida coast settlement to then stablish St. Augustine. From this point the book continues to tell the stories of Juan de Oñate, from witnessing the founding of Santa Fe, the oldest capital of North America, to exploring more than half a dozen of American states, he is one of the most fundamental conquistadors who is the least

Growing up in a Hispanic household has shaped and built my values in life. At Appleton North High School, I am one out of the few Hispanic students. Knowing that my parents have migrated to America to give me a better future has motivated me to make it happen. Although, as a Mexican-American, I have felt out of place as a minority. However, with time I learned to accept my cultural differences. In fact, to this day, I thank my widowed father for the sacrifices and greater opportunities he has given me. My goal is to keep representing the few Hispanic students in college by working hard to achieve my career goals; not all Hispanics are fortunate enough to attend college. I also work to inspire young Hispanics to find their potential and follow

Hispanics or Latinos are defined as a people of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, South or Central American, or other Spanish speaking culture. This term “Hispanics” was created by the U.S. federal government in the early 1970’s to refer to Americans born in a Spanish speaking nation or with ancestry to Spanish territories. Hispanics people are vibrant, socializing, and fun loving people. Among various facts associated to this culture is that they have a deep sense of involvement in their family traditions and cultures.

Climate change, once considered an issue for the distant future, has moved firmly into the present, and is beginning to affect Hispanic populations in the United States. According to the Environmental Defense Fund, climate change causes a net rise in global temperatures that inflames health-harming air pollution, adds to extreme weather events and heat waves, changes the spread of certain vector-borne diseases, and more. Many of these health impacts are already being felt across the United States, mostly aiming at the Hispanic population because of the statistic that they’re more likely to live in polluted neighborhoods, and because of the type of jobs the parents have, Latinos are three times more likely to die at work from heat-related illness, according to Yale Climate Connections. Many elements in the BIG GEMS acronym play a role in why the Hispanic population is more likely die from

Latino immigrants have been coming to America for a very long time. Most of the time it is for economic prosperity that they were not able to obtain in their home country. The Latino minority group has been getting a stronger presence in the United States as the years go by, but very few people know or understand how Latinos tend to identify themselves.

According to U.S. Census Bureau Latino comprise 17% of the American population establishing them as the largest racial minority within the nation. As of July 2013 54 million Latino’s take residence within the United States of America. The Latino population is estimated to reach 128.8 million in the year 2060.1 Other than being a member of the largest minority population, what does it mean to be Latina? Being Latino means you have a unique relationship to the Spanish language regardless of your ability to speak it, and it links you to the unique traditions and cuisine found among all Latinos.

A fascinating aspect of being Latino is that in one nuclear family you can find a child with a dark complexion and another child that can be categorized as white. My family was not the exception, due to several marriages of white and black spouses among my grandparents and great grand parents; I see all the colors in my nuclear family. I have a dark complexion and my sister that follows is white to the point that one of my neighbors used to call us “café con leche” (coffee with milk). We both have the same parents, but people look at us differently. My sister never had to deal with people looking at complexion as worst than other, she might have been prejudiced because of her gender, but I was always told that I should look for a dark skinned wife because my kids were going to ruin the family.

In identifying the linguistic, political, social, economic, religious, and familial conventions and/or statuses of four Hispanic groups living in the United States; the following four groups have been chosen, Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and El Salvadorians. Each group has a rich cultural identity but has been placed in the same category, Hispanic Americans, on the basis of language. All these groups share the Spanish language, though each has a different dialect and some words spelled and pronounced the same have different meanings. For example, sopa means soup in some countries, but in others it means soap.

Growing up in a Latino household is hard. My parents only spoke Spanish therefore my first language was Spanish. For the first few years of my life this was not really a problem, I enjoyed life as any normal little girl would. I got to talk to all of my cousins and all of the neighbor’s children. It wasn’t until I got to school that it became real that I was going to learn English. Don’t get me wrong I always knew I had to learn English my parents always talked to me about school and helped me as much as they could. It was also around this same time where I started to understand that it was not only hard for me it was hard for them as well. My parents had to live in this country not knowing the main language spoken.

How are Hispanics getting help with English and what obstacles or barriers are they facing? That is an extremely good question. Everyday, more and more Hispanics are making a move to the United States in hopes of a better life. The only problem is that many of them can not speak any English at all. Since the United States is basically an English speaking nation, it is important that Hispanics learn English to be able to adjust to life within the United States. But, that is easier said than done because it is not easy to get Hispanics the help that they need in learning English. There have to be people who are willing to tutor and fund programs. Of course, there are always obstacles or barriers that stands in the way of progress.

The United States Hispanic population is increasing each year. As of 2011, Hispanics make up nearly 52.0 million of the US population making them the leading minority group in the United States. From the year 2000 to 2011 alone, there has been a 37% increase in population. The projection for the year 2050 is 132.8 million (Nora, 2009). In turn, school populations of Hispanics are increase as well. Hispanics, although improving academically, continue to have high school dropout rates, higher than other racial and ethnic groups and continue to lag behind school peers. Nearly half of the Hispanic population fails to graduate from high school, 13% of the population receives their bachelors and an even smaller number of 4% receive their graduate or professional degree (Sepúlveda, J. 2010).

In the United States, Mexican-Americans comprise 14.5 percent of the total U.S. population. Today, while most Mexican-Americans live in urban areas, significant numbers comprise both the north and south, across the United States. However, one misconception is that all Spanish or Latino cultures are the same. The differences between Mexico and other Latin American countries include 500 years of separate histories and their specific customs. These specific customs were present prior to their submission to the Spaniards. Although Spanish is the principal language spoken by most Hispanics, regional pronunciations and dialects differ in their speech patterns. Similarly, the Mexican cultures each have different dietary patterns.

Hispanic culture is eminently different than United States culture. As explained above, there are several ways in which Hispanic culture and United States culture differ. Throughout SPA 210, cultural presentations were given at the conclusion of each chapter. These presentations were informative of different types of Hispanic cultures and why they are that way. They provided multiple statistics on the cultures and how certain events had affected and shaped the culture as a whole. Also, throughout the duration of the course, a hand full of films were shown in order to further our understanding of Hispanic cultures. These films presented useful for visual representations. All of the resources used helped aid those in attendance of the class in becoming more globally aware of how different cultures are shaped. SPA 210 has shown various ways in how Hispanic cultures display the qualities that shaped them; moreover, these include their home safety, the way they lead their populations, the way they build trust, and their time management.