Black Hispanic and Latino Americans, also called Afro-Hispanics
( es, Afrohispano, links=no), Afro-Latinos
or Black Hispanics, or Black Latinos
are classified by the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
,
Office of Management and Budget
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). OMB's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, but it also examines agency programs, pol ...
, and other U.S. government agencies
as
Black people
Black is a racialized classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin; in certain countries, often in s ...
living in the United States with ancestry in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
or
Latin America
Latin America or
* french: Amérique Latine, link=no
* ht, Amerik Latin, link=no
* pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
and/or who speak
Spanish, and/or
Portuguese as their
first language
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...
.
Hispanidad, which is independent of race, is the only ''
ethnic
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
'' category, as opposed to racial category, which is officially collated by the
U.S. Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
. The distinction made by government agencies for those within the population of any official race category, including "Black", is between those who report Hispanic backgrounds and all others who do not. ''Non-Hispanic Blacks'' consists of an ethnically diverse collection of all others who are classified as Black or African American that do not report Hispanic ethnic backgrounds.
Demographics
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
,
,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
and
Rhode Island
Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
have some of the highest percentages of Hispanics identifying as Black, where up to 25% of Hispanics identify as black, compared to 2.5% of Hispanics nationwide.
Overall, the Northeast region has the largest concentration of Black Hispanics; this is partly because of the large Puerto Rican, Dominican, and other mostly or partly African descended Hispanic populations in the region.
Black Hispanics accounted for 2.5% of the entire U.S. Hispanic population in 2010.
Most Black Hispanics in the United States come from within the
Dominican and
Puerto Rican populations.
Aside from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, large numbers of Black Hispanics can also be found in populations originating from northern South America, and the Caribbean coast of Central America as well, including the
Panamanian
Panamanians (Spanish: ''Panameños'') are people identified with Panama, a transcontinental country in Central America (a region within North America) and South America, whose connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For mo ...
and
Colombian communities, and to a lesser extent, the
Cuban-American community.
The number of Black Hispanics increased from 1,700,000 in 2010 to about 2,400,000 in 2019, about 4% of all Hispanics in the US
Because views of race in Latin America and the United States are slightly different, there is a fluidity in identifying with terms such as "black" or "Afro Latino" among Latinos in the United States. Recent immigrants from Latin America are more likely to embrace mixed identities (mestizaje) while thinking less of their African side, and some immigrant Latinos who are full black with little to no admixture do not identify as black. In contrast, Latinos who have lived in the United States for several generations are more likely to adopt urban afrocentric mentalities from African Americans and abandon that of their home countries, embracing the
One-drop rule, this is especially true for large portions of the Puerto Rican and now Dominican communities on the eastcoast.
The main aspects which distinguish Black Hispanics born in the United States of America from
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
s is having Spanish as their
mother tongue
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...
or most recent ancestors' native language, their culture passed down by their parents, and their
Spanish surnames
Spanish names are the traditional way of identifying, and the official way of registering, a person in Spain. They comprise a given name (simple or composite) and two surnames (the first surname of each parent). Traditionally, the first surname ...
. Of all Hispanic groups, Puerto Ricans have the closest relationship with the African American community, and because of this there is also increasing intermarriages and offspring between non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics of any race, mainly between Puerto Ricans and African Americans, which increases both the Hispanic ethnic and black racial demographics.
In May 2022,
Pew Research Center
The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan American think tank (referring to itself as a "fact tank") based in Washington, D.C.
It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the w ...
reported that there were an estimated six million Afro-Latino people in the United States, comprising 2% of the adult U.S. population, and 12% of adult Latinos. They also stated that one-in-seven Afro-Latinos did not "identify as Hispanic" and that 30% of Afro-Latino adults were 18 to 29. The report also stated that Afro-Latinos are more likely to be from
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
and the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
than from
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, noting that 40% of people had their families talk about challenges they'd face for their ethnic identity when they grew up, and that the "racial groups Afro-Latinos identify with can be varied and diverse." In the latter case, the report stated that about 30% of Afro-Latinos identified as White, 25% as Black, 23% as "some other race," 16% as "multiple races" and 1% as Asians.
Health
A review of twenty-one studies found Black Hispanics to have poorer health compared to
White Hispanics
In the United States, a white Hispanic or Latino is an individual who is of full or partial Hispanic or Latino descent, the largest group being white Mexican Americans. Although not differentiated in the U.S. Census definition, White Latino Ame ...
. The causes are still unknown, but researchers suggested that racial discrimination and segregation may contribute to
racial health differences among the Hispanic population in the United States.
Although Black Hispanics are often overlooked or dichotomized as either "black" or "Hispanic" in the United States of America, Black Hispanic writers often reflect upon their
racialized experience in their works. The most commonly used term in literature to speak of this ambiguity and multilayered hybridity at the heart of Latino/Latina identity and culture is ''miscegenation''.
This "mestizaje" depicts the multi-faceted racial and cultural identity that characterize Black Hispanics and highlights that each individual Black Hispanic has a unique experience within a broader racial and ethnic range.
The memoirs, poetry, sociological research, and essays written by Afro-Latino writers reflect this concept of mestizaje in addition to revealing the confusion and uncertainty about one's self-image of being both "Black" and "Hispanic". The psychological and social factors also prove to be central in determining how one ultimately defines him/herself.
Civil rights
Data from a 2021 survey by the
Pew Research Center
The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan American think tank (referring to itself as a "fact tank") based in Washington, D.C.
It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the w ...
shows that Hispanic people in the US with darker skin color are more likely to face incidents of discrimination than those with lighter skin. The survey asked participants to self-identify their skin color, and then asked series of questions about the kinds of discrimination they faced. When asked whether they faced at least one instance of discrimination in the last year, 64% of darker-skinned Hispanic adults responded that they had. When asked the same question, 54% of lighter-skinned Hispanic adults responded the same. As for the specific discrimination experienced:
* 42% of darker-skinned Hispanic people said they were treated as if they were not smart, compared to 34% of those with lighter skin.
* 42% of darker-skinned Hispanic people said they experienced discrimination by someone who is non-Hispanic, compared to 29% of those with lighter skin.
* 41% of darker-skinned Hispanic people said they experienced discrimination by someone who is Hispanic, compared to 25% of those with lighter skin.
* 33% of darker-skinned Hispanic people were criticized for speaking Spanish, compared to 22% of those with lighter skin.
* 32% of darker-skinned Hispanic people were told to go back to their country compared to 20% of those with lighter skin.
* 27% of darker-skinned Hispanic people feared for their personal safety, compared to 20% of those with lighter skin.
* 31% of darker-skinned Hispanic people were called offensive names, compared to 18% of those with lighter skin.
* 16% of darker-skinned Hispanics were unfairly stopped by police, compared to 8% of those with lighter skin.
In
Latin America
Latin America or
* french: Amérique Latine, link=no
* ht, Amerik Latin, link=no
* pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
, Black Hispanics have historically had similar discrimination issues as African Americans in the US, including Cuba, where racial discrimination against
Afro-Cubans
Afro-Cubans or Black Cubans are Cubans of West African ancestry. The term ''Afro-Cuban'' can also refer to historical or cultural elements in Cuba thought to emanate from this community and the combining of native African and other cultural ele ...
continues to be a major
Human Rights
Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...
issue for the Cuban government, even resulting in riots in Central Havana, a mostly black neighborhood in the capital. In
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, racism against
black Mexicans has been also an often ignored issue, and it wasn't until 2020 that an option appeared on the national census allowing black Mexicans to self-identify,
even though polls had showed that about 1.4 million Mexicans identify as black.
Racism in Puerto Rico
Historically, Puerto Rico, which is now an unincorporated U.S. territory, territory of the U.S., has been dominated by a settler, settler society of religiously and ethnically diverse Europeans, primarily of Spanish people, Spanish descent, and Bla ...
has also been well-documented, and according to ''Black Perspectives'', "in
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
, much like in the rest of Latin America, anti-Black racism is embedded in the very denial of its existence by the state and society."
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
's racism towards its near majority
Afro-Brazilian population also has a long, well-documented history, as well as its "whitening ideology" of the 1930s,
when the government encouraged European migration to successfully shift the country's racial make-up to a white majority.
In
Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
, racism against
Afro-Hondurans
Afro-Hondurans or Black Hondurans are Hondurans of Sub-Saharan African descent. The CIA world factbook regards their population to be around 2% of the country's population, while other sources estimate the percentage of Afro-Hondurans as being 10 ...
has also received international attention as the country struggles with discrimination issues.
Racism in Argentina In Argentina, there are and have been cases of discrimination based on ethnic characteristics or national origin. In turn, racial discrimination tends to be closely related to discriminatory behavior for socio-economic and political reasons.
In an ...
, which has a 97 percent white population,
is also well-documented and "persists against indigenous peoples, immigrants, Afro-Argentines, mestizo Argentines, Jews and Arabs."
Even in countries with majority black Hispanic populations, such as the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
, the case of racism against "darker" skinned
Dominicans and neighboring
Haitians
Haitians ( French: , ht, Ayisyen) are the citizens of Haiti and the descendants in the diaspora through direct parentage. An ethnonational group, Haitians generally comprise the modern descendants of self-liberated Africans in the Caribbean te ...
is an issue.
A
Pew Research
The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan American think tank (referring to itself as a "fact tank") based in Washington, D.C.
It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the wor ...
report published in May 2022 surveyed Afro-Latinos. Findings included 61% of Afro-Latinos saying they were discriminated against, including be more likely than other Latinos in being stopped by police, criticized by others for speaking Spanish in a public place, and people around them thinking they are "not smart."
In media
Since the early days of the movie industry in the United States of America, when Black Hispanic actors were given roles, they would usually be cast as African Americans.
For those with Spanish-speaking accents that betrayed an otherwise presumed African American, they may seldom have been given roles as Hispanics, and the mixed race Hispanic and Latino actors of African appearance were mostly given Hispanic roles.
Those who claim that Black Hispanics are not sought to play Hispanic roles in the United States allege this unfairly leads the masses of viewers to an ignorance to the existence of
darker skinned Hispanics. Further, some Black Hispanics who identify themselves as black but of also
mixed-race heritage once affirming their Hispanicity may be deprived of their status as Black people among African Americans, and categorized by society as non-Black in the American historical context.
Critics accuse U.S. Hispanic media, including Latin American media, of overlooking black Hispanic and Latino Americans and
black Latin Americans
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...
in the ''
telenovela
A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...
s'', mostly stereotyping them as impoverished people.
In January 2020, ''
The Owl House'' began airing on the
Disney Channel
Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...
. The series would feature
Luz Noceda, a Afro-Latino character whose parents are from the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
, and was based on a friend of the show's creator,
Dana Terrace, Luz Batista, who insisted that the character be Dominican like her.
In February 2021, LATV Networks, LLC premiered ''Blacktinidad'', the first national TV series focusing specifically on the black Latin experience.
See also
*
Afro-Cubans
Afro-Cubans or Black Cubans are Cubans of West African ancestry. The term ''Afro-Cuban'' can also refer to historical or cultural elements in Cuba thought to emanate from this community and the combining of native African and other cultural ele ...
*
Afro–Puerto Ricans
Afro-Puerto Ricans are Puerto Ricans who self-identify as Black. The history of Puerto Ricans of African descent begins with free African men, known as ''libertos'', who accompanied the Spanish Conquistadors in the invasion of the island. The S ...
*
Afro-Dominicans of the Dominican Republic
*
African Americans
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
*
Afro–Latin Americans
Afro–Latin Americans or Black Latin Americans (sometimes ''Afro-Latinos'', ''Afro-Latines'', or ''Afro-Latinx''), are Latin Americans of full or mainly African ancestry.
The term ''Afro–Latin American'' is not widely used in Latin America ...
*
Afro-Brazilians
Afro-Brazilians ( pt, afro-brasileiros; ) are Brazilians who have predominantly African ancestry (see " preto"). Most members of another group of people, multiracial Brazilians or ''pardos'', may also have a range of degree of African ancestry. ...
*
Equatoguinean Americans
Equatoguinean Americans ( es, ecuatoguineo-estadounidenses, ) are Americans of Equatoguinean descent.
Demographics
Equatoguineans are a small minority in the United States, with less than 300 individuals in 2000.
Notable people
* Gus Envela, ...
*
List of Afro-Latinos
Afro-Latinos or Afro–Latin Americans are those residents of Latin America who are descended from African slaves brought to Latin America and the Caribbean region during the trans-Atlantic slave trade, who made up 95% of all Africans brought to ...
*
List of Hispanic and Latino Americans
This is a list of notable Hispanic and Latino Americans: citizens or residents of the United States with origins in Latin America or Spain. The following groups are officially designated as "Spanish/Hispanic/Latino": Mexican American, ( ...
*
White Hispanic and Latino Americans
*
Asian Hispanic and Latino Americans
*
Blaxican
Blaxicans are people who are both Black and Mexican American. Some may prefer to identify as Afro-Chicano or Black Chicana/o and embrace Chicano identity, culture, and political consciousness. Most Blaxicans have origins in working class communit ...
*
Garifuna
The Garifuna people ( or ; pl. Garínagu in Garifuna) are a people of mixed free African and indigenous American ancestry that originated in the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent and speak Garifuna, an Arawakan language, and Vincentian ...
- a people of mixed free African and indigenous American
*
Oba Ifa Morote
Yoruba Americans (') are Americans of Yoruba descent. The Yoruba people are a West African ethnic group that predominantly inhabits southwestern Nigeria, with smaller indigenous communities in Benin and Togo.
History
The first Yoruba people ...
References
Further reading
The Afro-Latin@ Project- The Afro Latin@ Project aims to document, promote, coordinate and support the development of Afro-Latin@ studies and grass roots activities in the United States. This primary focus is informed and enriched by the historical and contemporary experience of African-descendant peoples in the Americas.
RUSQ Afro-Latino Archives- An extensive list of books, films, memoirs, databases, and articles which provide more insight into the Afro-Latino experience, in and out of the United States.
External links
(June 1997). Essayist Richard Rodriguez on the meaning of the "Hispanic" label.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black Hispanic And Latino Americans
Hispanic and Latino American
African–Hispanic and Latino American relations
Ethnic groups in the United States