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Hispanic and Latino Americans ( es, Estadounidenses hispanos y latinos; pt, Estadunidenses hispânicos e latinos) are Americans of Spanish and/or Latin American ancestry. More broadly, these demographics include all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino regardless of ancestry.Mark Hugo Lopez, Jens Manuel Krogstad and Jeffrey S. Passel
Who Is Hispanic?
Pew Research Center (November 11, 2019).
As of 2020, the Census Bureau estimated that there were almost 65.3 million Hispanics and Latinos living in the United States and its territories (which include Puerto Rico). "Origin" can be viewed as the ancestry, nationality group, lineage or country of birth of the person or the person's parents or ancestors before their arrival in the United States of America. People who identify as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. As one of the only two specifically designated categories of
ethnicity in the United States The United States has a racially and ethnically diverse population. At the federal level, race and ethnicity have been categorized separately. The most recent United States Census officially recognized five racial categories (White, Black ...
(the other being "Not Hispanic or Latino"), Hispanics and Latinos form a pan-ethnicity incorporating a diversity of inter-related cultural and linguistic heritages. Most Hispanic and Latino Americans are of
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Spanish, Salvadoran, Dominican, Brazilian, Guatemalan, Colombian, or
Venezuelan Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
origin. The predominant origin of regional Hispanic and Latino populations varies widely in different locations across the country. In 2012, Hispanic Americans were the second fastest-growing ethnic group by percentage growth in the United States after
Asian Americans Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...
. Hispanics of Indigenous descent and Native Americans are the oldest ethnic groups to inhabit much of what is today the United States. Spain colonized large areas of what is today the American Southwest and
West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...
, as well as Florida. Its holdings included present-day California, Texas, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and Florida, all of which constituted part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, based in Mexico City. Later, this vast territory became part of Mexico after its independence from Spain in 1821 and until the end of the Mexican–American War in 1848. Hispanic immigrants to the
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 * '' ...
/ New Jersey metropolitan area derive from a broad spectrum of Hispanic countries.


Terminology

The terms " Hispanic" and " Latino" refer to an
ethnicity 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, ...
. The U.S. Census Bureau defines being Hispanic as being a member of an ethnicity, rather than being a member of a particular race and thus, people who are members of this group may also be members of any race.Ana Gonzales-Barrera & Mark Hugo Lopez
Is being Hispanic a matter of race, ethnicity or both?
Pew Research Center (June 15, 2015).
In a 2015 national survey of self-identified Hispanics, 56% said that being Hispanic is part of both their racial and ethnic background, while smaller numbers considered it part of their ethnic background only (19%) or racial background only (11%). Hispanics may be of any linguistic background; in a 2015 survey, 71% of American Hispanics agreed that it "is not necessary for a person to speak Spanish to be considered Hispanic/Latino". Hispanic and Latino people may share some commonalities in their language, culture, history, and heritage. According to the Smithsonian Institution, the term "Latino" includes peoples with Portuguese roots, such as
Brazilians Brazilians ( pt, Brasileiros, ) are the citizens of Brazil. A Brazilian can also be a person born abroad to a Brazilian parent or legal guardian as well as a person who acquired Brazilian citizenship. Brazil is a multiethnic society, which me ...
, as well as those of Spanish-language origin. In the United States, many Hispanics are of Iberian (primarily Spanish) and Indigenous American ancestry (
mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...
). Others may have European, Middle Eastern (including Jewish), or Asian ancestry as well as Indigenous American ancestry. Many Hispanics from the Caribbean, as well as many Hispanics from other regions of the Hispanic world where African slavery was widespread, may also be of
sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...
n descent. The difference between the terms ''Hispanic'' and ''Latino'' is ambiguous to some people. The US Census Bureau equates the two terms and defines them as referring to anyone from Spain or the Spanish- or Portuguese-speaking countries of the Americas. After the Mexican–American War concluded in 1848, term ''Hispanic'' or ''Spanish American'' was primarily used to describe the Hispanos of New Mexico within the American Southwest. The 1970 United States Census controversially broadened the definition to "a person of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Dominican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race". This is now the common formal and colloquial definition of the term within the United States, outside of New Mexico.Cobos, Rubén (2003) "Introduction", ''A Dictionary of New Mexico & Southern Colorado Spanish'' (2nd ed.); Santa Fe: Museum of New Mexico Press; p. ix; This definition is consistent with the 21st-century usage by the U.S. Census Bureau and OMB, as the two agencies use both terms Hispanic and Latino interchangeably. 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 ...
believes that the term "Hispanic" is strictly limited to Spain, Puerto Rico, and all countries where Spanish is the only official language whereas "Latino" includes all countries in Latin America (even Brazil) regardless of the fact that Portuguese is its only official language, but it does not include Spain. The term Latino is a condensed form of ''"latinoamericano"'', the Spanish term for a Latin American, or someone who comes from Latin America. The term ''Latino'' has developed a number of definitions. This definition, as a "male Latin American inhabitant of the United States", was the original and is therefore the oldest definition which is used in the United States, it was first used in 1946. Under this definition a
Mexican American Mexican Americans ( es, mexicano-estadounidenses, , or ) are Americans of full or partial Mexican heritage. In 2019, Mexican Americans comprised 11.3% of the US population and 61.5% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexica ...
or Puerto Rican, for example, is both a Hispanic and a Latino. A
Brazilian American Brazilian Americans ( pt, brasileiros americanos or ) are Americans who are of full or partial Brazilian ancestry. The Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs estimates the Brazilian American population to be 1,775,000, the largest of any Brazilia ...
is also a Latino by this definition, which includes those of Portuguese-speaking origin from Latin America. But also by this definition,
Italian Americans Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, w ...
are ''not'' considered "Latino", as they are for the most part descended from immigrants from Europe rather than Latin America, unless they happen to have had recent history in a Latin American country. Preference of use between the terms among Hispanics in the United States often depends on where users of the respective terms reside. Those in the Eastern United States tend to prefer the term ''Hispanic'', whereas those in the West tend to prefer ''Latino''. The U.S. ethnic designation ''Latino'' is abstracted from the longer form ''latinoamericano''. The element ''latino-'' is actually an indeclinable, compositional form in ''-o'' (i.e. an ''elemento compositivo'') that is employed to coin compounded formations (similar as ''franco-'' in ''francocanadiense'' 'French-Canadian′, or ''ibero-'' in ''iberorrománico'', etc.). The term '' Latinx'' (and similar neologism '' Xicanx'') have gained some usage. The adoption of the ''X'' would be " flecting new consciousness inspired by more recent work by LGBTQI and feminist movements, some Spanish-speaking activists are increasingly using a yet more inclusive "x" to replace the "a" and "o", in a complete break with the gender binary. Among the advocates of the term ''LatinX'', one of most frequently cited complaints of gender bias in the Spanish language is that a group of mixed or unknown gender would be referred to as ''Latinos'', whereas ''Latinas'' refers to a group of women only (but this is changed immediately to ''Latinos'', if even a single man joins this female group). A 2020 Pew Research Center survey found that about 3% of Hispanics use the term (mostly women), and only around 23% have even heard of the term. Of those, 65% said it should not be used to describe their ethnic group. Some have pointed out that the term “Hispanic” refers to a pan-ethnic identity, one that spans a range of races, national origins, and linguistic backgrounds. “Terms like Hispanic and Latino do not fully capture how we see ourselves”, says Geraldo Cadava, an associate professor of history and Hispanic studies at Northwestern University. According to 2017
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is a demographics survey program conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the decennial census, such as ancestry, citizenship, educati ...
data, a small minority of immigrants from Brazil (2%), Portugal (2%), and the Philippines (1%) self-identified as Hispanic.


History


16th and 17th centuries

Spanish explorers were pioneers in the territory of the present-day United States. The first confirmed European landing in the continental United States was by
Juan Ponce de León Juan Ponce de León (, , , ; 1474 – July 1521) was a Spanish explorer and '' conquistador'' known for leading the first official European expedition to Florida and for serving as the first governor of Puerto Rico. He was born in Santervá ...
, who landed in 1513 at a lush shore he christened '' La Florida''. In the next three decades, the Spanish became the first Europeans to reach the Appalachian Mountains, the Mississippi River, the
Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon (, yuf-x-yav, Wi:kaʼi:la, , Southern Paiute language: Paxa’uipi, ) is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a m ...
and the
Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
. Spanish ships sailed along the Atlantic Coast, penetrating to present-day
Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat of Penobscot County. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's 3rd-largest settlement, behind Portland (68,408) and Lewiston (37,121). Modern Bangor ...
, and up the
Pacific Coast Pacific coast may be used to reference any coastline that borders the Pacific Ocean. Geography Americas Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western or southwestern border, except for Panama, where the Pac ...
as far as Oregon. From 1528 to 1536, Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and three fellows (including an African named Estevanico), from a Spanish expedition that foundered, journeyed from Florida to the Gulf of California. In 1540,
Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto (; ; 1500 – 21 May, 1542) was a Spanish explorer and '' conquistador'' who was involved in expeditions in Nicaragua and the Yucatan Peninsula. He played an important role in Francisco Pizarro's conquest of the Inca Empire ...
undertook an extensive exploration of the present United States. Also in 1540,
Francisco Vásquez de Coronado Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...
led 2,000 Spaniards and Mexican natives across today's Arizona–Mexico border and traveled as far as central Kansas, close to the exact geographic center of what is now the continental United States. Other Spanish explorers of the US territory include, among others:
Alonso Alvarez de Pineda Alonso is a Spanish name of Germanic name, Germanic origin that is a Castilian variant of ''Adalfuns''. Geographical distribution As of 2014, 36.6% of all known bearers of the surname ''Alonso'' were residents of Spain (frequency 1:222), 26.1% o ...
, Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón, Pánfilo de Narváez, Sebastián Vizcaíno, Gaspar de Portolà,
Pedro Menéndez de Avilés Pedro Menéndez de Avilés (; ast, Pedro (Menéndez) d'Avilés; 15 February 1519 – 17 September 1574) was a Spanish admiral, explorer and conquistador from Avilés, in Asturias, Spain. He is notable for planning the first regular trans-oceani ...
, Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, Tristán de Luna y Arellano, and Juan de Oñate, and non-Spanish explorers working for the Spanish Crown, such as
Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo ( pt, João Rodrigues Cabrilho; c. 1499 – January 3, 1543) was an Iberian maritime explorer best known for investigations of the West Coast of North America, undertaken on behalf of the Spanish Empire. He was the firs ...
. In 1565, the Spanish created the first permanent European settlement in the continental United States, at
St. Augustine, Florida St. Augustine ( ; es, San Agustín ) is a city in the Southeastern United States and the county seat of St. Johns County on the Atlantic coast of northeastern Florida. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorers, it is the oldest continuously inhabit ...
. Spanish missionaries and colonists founded settlements including in the present-day
Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...
, El Paso, San Antonio, Tucson, Albuquerque, San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.


18th and 19th centuries

As late as 1783, at the end of the American Revolutionary War (a conflict in which Spain aided and fought alongside the rebels), Spain held claim to roughly half the territory of today's continental United States. From 1819 to 1848, the United States (through treaties, purchase, diplomacy, and the Mexican–American War) increased its area by roughly a third at Spanish and Mexican expense, acquiring its three currently most populous states— California, Texas, and Florida.. Many Hispanic natives lived in the areas that the United States acquired, and a new wave of Mexican, Central American, Caribbean, and South American immigrants had moved to the United States for new opportunities. This was the beginning of a demographic that would rise dramatically over the years.Gutiérrez, David G. "An Historic Overview of Latino Immigration and the Demographic Transformation of the United States". National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/heritageinitiatives/latino/latinothemestudy/immigration.htm.


20th and 21st centuries

During the 20th and 21st centuries, Hispanic immigration to the United States increased markedly following changes to the
immigration law Immigration law refers to the national statutes, regulations Regulation is the management of complex systems according to a set of rules and trends. In systems theory, these types of rules exist in various fields of biology and society, but the ...
in 1965. During the World Wars, Hispanic Americans and immigrants had helped stabilize the American economy from falling due to the industrial boom in the Midwest in states such as Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. While a percentage of Americans had fled their jobs for the war, Hispanics had taken their jobs in the Industrial world. This can explain why there is such a high concentration of Hispanic Americans in Metro Areas such as the Chicago-Elgin-Naperville, Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, and Cleveland-Elyria areas. Hispanic contributions in the historical past and present of the United States are addressed in more detail below (See Notables and their contributions). To recognize the current and historic contributions of Hispanic Americans, on September 17, 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson designated a week in mid-September as National Hispanic Heritage Week, with Congress's authorization. In 1988, President
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
extended the observance to a month, designated National Hispanic Heritage Month. Hispanic Americans became the largest minority group in 2004.


Demographics

As of 2020, Hispanics accounted for 19-20% of the US population, or 62-65 million people. The U.S. Census Bureau later estimated that Hispanics were under-counted by 5.0% or 3.3 million persons in the U.S. Census, which explains the 3 million range in the number above. In contrast, Whites were over-counted by about 3 million. The Hispanic growth rate over the April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2007, period was 28.7%—about four times the rate of the nation's total population growth (at 7.2%). The growth rate from July 1, 2005, to July 1, 2006, alone was 3.4%—about three and a half times the rate of the nation's total population growth (at 1.0%). Based on the 2010 census, Hispanics are now the largest minority group in 191 out of 366 metropolitan areas in the United States. The projected Hispanic population of the United States for July 1, 2050 is 132.8 million people, or 30.2% of the nation's total projected population on that date.


Geographic distribution

US Metropolitan Statistical Areas with over 1 million Hispanics (2014) States and territories with the highest proportion of Hispanics (2021) Of the nation's total Hispanic population, 49% (21.5 million) live in California or Texas. In 2022, New York City and Washington, D.C. began receiving significant numbers of Latino migrants from the state of Texas, mostly originating from Venezuela, Ecuador,
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
, and
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 ...
. Over half of the Hispanic population is concentrated in the Southwest region, mostly composed of Mexican Americans. California and Texas have some of the largest populations of Mexicans and Central American Hispanics in the United States. The
Northeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
region is dominated by Dominican Americans and
Puerto Ricans Puerto Ricans ( es, Puertorriqueños; or boricuas) are the people of Puerto Rico, the inhabitants, and citizens of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and their descendants. Overview The culture held in common by most Puerto Ricans is referred t ...
, having the highest concentrations of both in the country. In the Mid Atlantic region, centered on the
DC Metro Area The Washington metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the National Capital Region, is the metropolitan area centered on Washington, D.C. The metropolitan area includes all of Washington, D.C. and parts of the states of Maryland, Virgin ...
, Salvadoran Americans are the largest of Hispanic groups. Florida is dominated by Cuban Americans and Puerto Ricans. In both the
Great Lakes states The Great Lakes region of North America is a binational Canadian– American region that includes portions of the eight U.S. states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin along with the Canadia ...
and the South Atlantic states, Mexicans and Puerto Ricans dominate. Mexicans dominate in the rest of the country, including the West, South Central and
Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
states.


National origin

As of 2018, approximately 61.9% of the nation's Hispanic population were of Mexican origin (see table). Another 15.1% were of Puerto Rican origin, and with about 3.9% each of Cuban and Salvadoran and about 3.5% Dominican origins. The remainder were of other Central American or of South American origin, or of origin directly from Spain. Two thirds of all Hispanic Americans were born in the United States. There are few immigrants directly from Spain, since Spaniards have historically emigrated to Hispanic America rather than to English-speaking countries. Because of this, most Hispanics who identify themselves as ''Spaniard'' or ''Spanish'' also identify with Hispanic American national origin. In the 2017 Census estimate approximately 1.3 million Americans reported some form of "Spanish" as their ancestry, whether directly from Spain or not. In northern New Mexico and southern Colorado, there is a large portion of Hispanics who trace their ancestry to settlers from
New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...
(Mexico), and sometimes Spain itself, in the late 16th century through the 17th century. People from this background often self-identify as "
Hispanos Hispanos (from es, adj. prefix Hispano- relating to Spain, from la, Hispānus) are Hispanic residents of the United States who are culturally descended from the original Spanish-speaking settlers in the areas which were once part of New Spain ...
", "Spanish" or "Hispanic". Many of these settlers also intermarried with local Native Americans, creating a
mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...
population. Likewise, southern Louisiana is home to communities of people of
Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...
descent, known as Isleños, in addition to other people of Spanish ancestry.
Californio Californio (plural Californios) is a term used to designate a Hispanic Californian, especially those descended from Spanish and Mexican settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries. California's Spanish-speaking community has resided there sinc ...
s,
Nuevomexicanos The Hispanos of New Mexico, also known as Neomexicanos ( es, Neomexicano) or Nuevomexicanos, are Hispanic residents originating in the historical region of Santa Fe de Nuevo México, today the US state of New Mexico (''Nuevo México''), south ...
and
Tejano Tejanos (, ; singular: ''Tejano/a''; Spanish for "Texan", originally borrowed from the Caddo ''tayshas'') are the residents of the state of Texas who are culturally descended from the Mexican population of Tejas and Coahuila that lived in the ...
s are Americans of Spanish and/or
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
descent, with subgroups that sometimes call themselves
Chicanos Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American ident ...
. Nuevomexicanos and Tejanos are distinct southwest Hispanic cultures with their own cuisines, dialects and musical traditions. Nuyoricans are Americans of Puerto Rican descent from the New York City area. There are close to two million Nuyoricans in the United States. Prominent Nuyoricans include Congresswoman
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of th ...
, US Supreme Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor, and singer
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...
.


Race

Hispanics come from multi-racial and multi-ethnic countries with diversity of origins; therefore, a Hispanic can be from any race or mix of races. The most common ancestries are: Indigenous American (Native Americans), European and African. Most Hispanics have mixed ancestry of different combinations and ratios, although non-mixed Hispanics of each race also exist in varied amounts on each country. Hispanic origin is independent of race and is termed "ethnicity" by the United States Census Bureau. Depending on the regions within Hispanic America, a significant proportion of Hispanics have high to moderate levels Native Indigenous American ancestry. Similarly to Portuguese, English, German and many other European nations over the centuries, many Hispanics also have colonial era New Christian Sephardic Jewish ancestry. To a lesser extent, Hispanics possess at least partial ancestry of more recent post-colonial ancestry from Ashkenazi Jews, Levantine Arabs (Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian). Thus, as a whole, Hispanics are of mostly of a mixture of Iberian and Native Indigenous American ancestry, with degrees of admixture levels that vary from person to person, from varying global genetic sources. On the
2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, 20.3% of Hispanics identified selected "white" as their race. These white Hispanics make up 12,579,626 people or 3.8% of the population. The largest numbers of those who consider themselves white Hispanic Americans come from within the
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
, Puerto Rican, Cuban,
Salvadorans Salvadorans (Spanish: ''Salvadoreños''), also known as Salvadorians (alternate spelling: Salvadoreans), are citizens of El Salvador, a country in Central America. Most Salvadorans live in El Salvador, although there is also a significant Salvado ...
, Spanish and Argentines communities. Over 42% of Hispanic Americans identify as " some other race". These "some other race" Hispanics are usually assumed to be mestizos or mulattos.
Mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...
is not a racial category in the U.S. Census, but signifies someone who is conscious of both their Native American and European ancestry. Of all Americans who checked the box "Some Other Race", 97 percent were Hispanic. Almost one-third of the multi-race respondents were Hispanics. Most of the multi-racial population in the Mexican, Salvadoran, and Guatemalan communities are of mixed European and Native American ancestry (
mestizo (; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...
), while most of the multiracial population in the Puerto Rican, Dominican, and Cuban communities are of mixed European, Native Indigenous American, Canary Islander and Sub-Saharan African. The largest numbers of black Hispanics are from the Spanish Caribbean islands, including the Cuban, Dominican, Panamanian and Puerto Rican communities. As Latinos, especially Mexicans and Central Americans, who are mainly of a mixed-race background, have moved further from the southwest, their presence might disrupt in the long term the traditional American view of race as a binary between Black and white. The few hundred thousand Asian Hispanics are of various backgrounds, among which include Filipino mestizos with Spanish background, Asians of Hispanic background (examples including Chinese Cubans, Korean Argentines Japanese Peruvians) and those of recent mixed Asian and Hispanic background. Note that Filipinos are generally ''not'' counted as Hispanic, despite the fact that the Spanish colonized the Philippines and many Filipinos have Spanish names. Hispanic Americans are often racially of Native American ancestry mixed with Iberians. For example, of Hispanics deriving from northern Mexico, consider themselves white or acknowledge Native American ancestry with some European mixtures, while of those deriving from southern Mexican ancestry, the majority are Native American or of Native American and European ancestry. In Guatemala, Mayans are majority, while in El Salvador, people of Native American descent are the majority. In the Dominican Republic, the population is largely of inter-mixed ancestries. In Puerto Rico, people have some Native Indigenous American ancestry as well as European and Canary Islander ancestry. There's also a population of predominantly African descent as well as populations of Native American descent as well as those with intermixed ancestries. Cubans are mostly of Iberian and Canary Islander ancestry, with some heritage from Native Indigenous Caribbean. There are also populations of black Sub-Saharan ancestry and multi-racial people. The race and culture of each Hispanic country and their United States diaspora differs by history and geography. Welch and Sigelman found, as of the year 2000, lower interaction between Latinos of different nationalities (such as between Cubans and Mexicans) than between Latinos and non-Latinos. This is a reminder that while they are often treated as such, Latinos in the United States are not a monolith, and often view their own ethnic or national identity as vastly different than that of other Latinos. Persons of Mexican heritage represent the bulk of the U.S. Hispanic population. Most Mexican Americans already with a multi-generational presence in the USA predating the 1970s are of predominantly mixed Native Indigenous American groups and to a lesser extent Iberians, while most recent Mexican Americans that have migrated or descend from migrants to the United States post-1980s are of predominantly Native American descent with varying levels of European admixture. Official sources report that the racial makeup of Hispanic subgroups from the countries Uruguay, Cuba, and Chile have the highest proportion, for their respective countries, of Hispanics in the US self-identifying as white – though in raw numbers the highest number of white Hispanics in the United States are Mexican Americans. As a result of their racial diversity, Hispanics form an
ethnicity 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, ...
sharing a language ( Spanish) and cultural heritage, rather than a race. The phenomenon of biracial people who are predominantly of European descent identifying as white is not limited to Hispanics or Spanish speakers but is also common among English speakers as well: researchers found that most white Americans with less than 28 percent African-American ancestry say they are white; above that threshold, people tended to describe themselves as African-American.


Age

As of 2014, one third, or 17.9 million, of the Hispanic population was younger than 18 and a quarter, 14.6 million, were
Millennials Millennials, also known as Generation Y or Gen Y, are the Western demographic cohort following Generation X and preceding Generation Z. Researchers and popular media use the early 1980s as starting birth years and the mid-1990s to early 2000 ...
. This makes them more than half of the Hispanic population within the United States.


Education


Hispanic K–12 education

With the increasing Hispanic population in the United States, Hispanics have had a considerable impact on the K–12 system. In 2011–12, Hispanics comprised 24% of all enrollments in the United States, including 52% and 51% of enrollment in California and Texas, respectively.Santiago, D., Galdeano, E. C., & Taylor, M. (2015). The Condition of Latinos in Education: 2015 Factbook. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(02)77934-8 Further research shows the Hispanic population will continue to grow in the United States, implicating that more Hispanics will populate U.S. schools. The state of Hispanic education shows some promise. First, Hispanic students attending pre-K or kindergarten were more likely to attend full-day programs. Second, Hispanics in elementary education were the second largest group represented in gifted and talented programs. Third, Hispanics' average NAEP math and reading scores have consistently increased over the last 10 years. Finally, Hispanics were more likely than other groups, including white people, to go to college. However, their academic achievement in early childhood, elementary, and secondary education lag behind other groups. For instance, their average math and reading NAEP scores were lower than every other group, except African Americans, and have the highest dropout rate of any group, 13% despite decreasing from 24%. To explain these disparities, some scholars have suggested there is a Hispanic "Education Crisis" due to failed school and social policies. To this end, scholars have further offered several potential reasons including language barriers, poverty, and immigrant/nativity status resulting in Hispanics not performing well academically.


English language learners

Currently, Hispanic students make up 80% of English language learners in the United States. In 2008–2009, 5.3 million students were classified as English Language Learners (ELLs) in pre-K to 12th grade. This is a result of many students entering the education system at different ages, although the majority of ELLs are not foreign born. In order to provide English instruction for Hispanic students there have been a multitude of English Language programs. However, the great majority of these programs are English Immersion, which arguably undermines the students' culture and knowledge of their primary language. As such, there continues to be great debate within schools as to which program can address these language disparities.


Immigration status

Undocumented immigrants have not always had access to compulsory education in the United States. However, since the landmark Supreme Court case '' Plyler v. Doe'' in 1982, immigrants have received access to K-12 education. This significantly impacted all immigrant groups, including Hispanics. However, their academic achievement is dependent upon several factors including, but not limited to time of arrival and schooling in country of origin. Moreover, Hispanics' immigration/nativity status plays a major role regarding their academic achievement. For instance, first- and second- generation Hispanics outperform their later generational counterparts. Additionally, their aspirations appear to decrease as well. This has major implications on their postsecondary futures.


Hispanic higher education

Those with a bachelor's degree or higher ranges from 50% of Venezuelans compared to 18% for Ecuadorians 25 years and older. Amongst the largest Hispanic groups, those with a bachelor's or higher was 25% for Cubans, 16% of Puerto Ricans, 15% of Dominicans, and 11% for Mexicans. Over 21% of all second-generation Dominican Americans have college degrees, slightly below the national average (28%) but significantly higher than U.S.-born Mexican Americans (13%) and U.S.-born Puerto Rican Americans (12%). Hispanics make up the second or third largest ethnic group in Ivy League universities, considered to be the most prestigious in the United States. Hispanic enrollment at Ivy League universities has gradually increased over the years. Today, Hispanics make up between 8% of students at Yale University to 15% at Columbia University. For example, 18% of students in the Harvard University Class of 2018 are Hispanic. Hispanics have significant enrollment in many other top universities such as University of Texas at El Paso (70% of students), Florida International University (63%), University of Miami (27%), and MIT, UCLA and UC-Berkeley at 15% each. At
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, Hispanics are the third largest ethnic group behind non-Hispanic white people and Asians, at 18% of the student population.


Hispanic university enrollments

While Hispanics study in colleges and universities throughout the country, some choose to attend federally-designated Hispanic-serving institutions, institutions that are accredited, degree-granting, public or private nonprofit institutions of higher education with 25 percent or more total undergraduate Hispanic full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment. There are over 270 institutions of higher education that have been designated as an HSI.


Health


Longevity

As of 2016, life expectancy for Hispanic Americans is 81.8 years, which is higher than the life expectancy for non-Hispanic white Americans (78.6 years). Research on the " Hispanic paradox"—the well-established apparent mortality advantage of Hispanic Americans compared to non-Hispanic white Americans, despite the latter's more advantaged socioeconomic status—has been principally explained by "(1) health-related migration to and from the US; and (2) social and cultural protection mechanisms, such as maintenance of healthy lifestyles and behaviors adopted in the countries of origin, and availability of extensive social networks in the US." The "salmon bias" hypothesis, which suggests that the Hispanic health advantage is attributable to higher rates of return migration among less-healthy migrants, has received some support in the scholarly literature. A 2019 study, examining the comparatively better health of foreign-born American Hispanics, challenged the hypothesis that a stronger orientation toward the family ( familism) contributed to this advantage. Some scholars have suggested that the Hispanic mortality advantage is likely to disappear due to the higher rates of obesity and diabetes among Hispanics relative to non-Hispanic white people, although lower rates of smoking (and thus smoking-attributable mortality) among Hispanics may counteract this to some extent.


Healthcare

As of 2017, about 19% of Hispanic Americans lack health insurance coverage, which is the highest of all ethnic groups except for Indigenous Americans and Alaska Natives. In terms of extending health coverage, Hispanics benefited the most among U.S. ethnic groups from the Affordable Care Act (ACA); among non-elderly Hispanics, the uninsured rate declined from 26.7% in 2013 to 14.2% in 2017. Among the population of non-elderly uninsured Hispanic population in 2017, about 53% were non-citizens, about 39% were U.S.-born citizens, and about 9% were naturalized citizens. (The ACA does not help undocumented immigrants or legal immigrants with less than five years' residence in the United States gain coverage). According to a 2013 study, Mexican women have the highest uninsured rate (54.6%) as compared to other immigrants (26.2%), black (22.5%) and non-Hispanic white (13.9%). According to the study, Mexican women are the largest female immigrant group in the United States and are also the most at risk for developing preventable health conditions. Multiple factors such as limited access to health care, legal status and income increase the risk of developing preventable health conditions because many undocumented immigrants postpone routine visits to the doctor until they become seriously ill.


Mental health


Family separation

Some families who are in the process of illegally crossing borders can suffer being caught and separated by border patrol agents. Migrants are also in danger of separation if they do not bring sufficient resources such as water for all members to continue crossing. Once illegal migrants have arrived to the new country, they may fear workplace raids where illegal immigrants are detained and deported. Family separation puts U.S born children, undocumented children and their illegal immigrant parents at risk for depression and family maladaptive syndrome. The effects are often long-term and the impact extends to the community level. Children may experience emotional traumas and long-term changes in behaviors. Additionally, when parents are forcefully removed, children often develop feelings of abandonment and they might blame themselves for what has happened to their family. Some children that are victims to illegal border crossings that result in family separation believe in the possibility of never seeing their parents again. These effects can cause negative parent-child attachment. Reunification may be difficult because of immigration laws and re-entry restrictions which further affect the mental health of children and parents. Parents who leave their home country also experience negative mental health experiences. According to a study published in 2013, 46% of Mexican migrant men who participated in the study reported elevated levels of depressive symptoms.Letiecq, B., L., Grzywacz, J., G., Gray, K., M., Eudave, Y., M.(2014). Depression among Mexican men on the migration frontier: the role of family separation and other structural and situational stressors. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 16, 1193–1200 In recent years, the length of stay for migrants has increased, from 3 years to nearly a decade. Migrants who were separated from their families, either married or single, experienced greater depression than married men accompanied by their spouses. Furthermore, the study also revealed that men who are separated from their families are more prone to harsher living conditions such as overcrowded housing and are under a greater deal of pressure to send remittance to support their families. These conditions put additional stress on the migrants and often worsen their depression. Families who migrated together experience better living conditions, receive emotional encouragement and motivation from each other, and share a sense of solidarity. They are also more likely to successfully navigate the employment and health care systems in the new country, and are not pressured to send remittances back home.


Discrimination

It is reported that 31% of Hispanics have reported personal experiences with
discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...
whilst 82% of Hispanics believe that discrimination plays a crucial role in whether or not they will find success while they are living in the United States.Torres, S., A., Santiago, C., D., Walts, K., K., Richards, M., H. (2018). Immigration policy, practices and procedures: the impact on the mental health of Mexican and central American youth and families. American Psychologist, 1-12. The current legislation on immigration policies also plays a crucial role in creating a hostile and discriminatory environment for immigrants. In order to measure the discrimination which immigrants are being subjected to, researchers must take into account the immigrants' perception that they are being targeted for discrimination and they must also be aware that instances of discrimination can also vary based on: personal experiences, social attitudes and ethnic group barriers. The immigrant experience is associated with lower self-esteem, internalized symptoms and behavioral problems amongst Mexican youth. It is also known that more time which is spent living in the United States is associated with increased feelings of distress, depression and anxiety. Like many other Hispanic groups that migrate to the United States, these groups are often stigmatized. An example of this stigmatization occurred after
9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...
, when people who were considered threats to national security were frequently described with terms like migrant and the "Hispanic Other" along with other terms like refugee and asylum seeker.


Vulnerabilities

The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 significantly changed how the United States dealt with immigration. Under this new law, immigrants who overstayed their visas or were found to be in the United States illegally were subject to be detained and/or deported without legal representation. Immigrants who broke these laws may not be allowed back into the country. Similarly, this law made it more difficult for other immigrants who want to enter the U.S or gain legal status. These laws also expanded the types of offenses that can be considered worthy of deportation for documented immigrants.Torres, S., A., Santiago, C., D., Walts, K., K., Richards, M., H.(2018). Immigration policy, practices and procedures: the impact on the mental health of Mexican and central American youth and families. American Psychologist, 1-12. Policies enacted by future presidents further limit the number of immigrants entering the country and their expedited removal. Many illegal immigrant families cannot enjoy doing everyday activities without exercising caution because they fear encountering immigration officers which limits their involvement in community events. Undocumented families also do not trust government institutions and services. Because of their fear of encountering immigration officers, illegal immigrants often feel ostracized and isolated which can lead to the development of mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. The harmful effects of being ostracized from the rest of society are not limited to just that of undocumented immigrants but it affects the entire family even if some of the members are of legal status. Children often reported having been victims of bullying in school by classmates because their parents are undocumented. This can cause them to feel isolated and develop a sense of inferiority which can negatively impact their academic performance.


Stress

Despite the struggles Hispanic families encounter, they have found ways to keep motivated. Many immigrants use religion as a source of motivation. Mexican immigrants believed that the difficulties they face are a part of God's bigger plan and believe their life will get better in the end. They kept their faith strong and pray every day, hoping that God will keep their families safe.Hinojos, B.(2013). Stressors and Coping Strategies of Undocumented Latinos in Therapy. Public Access Theses and Dissertations from the College of Education and Human Sciences. Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1189&context=cehsdiss Immigrants participate in church services and bond with other immigrants that share the same experiences. Undocumented Hispanics also find support from friends, family and the community that serve as coping mechanisms. Some Hispanics state that their children are the reason they have the strength to keep on going. They want their children to have a future and give them things they are not able to have themselves. The community is able to provide certain resources that immigrant families need such as tutoring for their children, financial assistance and counseling services. Some identified that maintaining a positive mental attitude helped them cope with the stresses they experience. Many immigrants refuse to live their life in constant fear which leads to depression in order to enjoy life in the United States. Since many immigrants have unstable sources of income, many plan ahead in order to prevent future financial stress. They put money aside and find ways to save money instead of spend it such as learning to fix appliances themselves.


Poverty

Many Hispanic families migrate to find better economic opportunities in order to send remittances back home. Being undocumented limits the possibilities of jobs that immigrants undertake and many struggle to find a stable job. Many Hispanics report that companies turned them down because they do not have a Social Security number. If they are able to obtain a job, immigrants risk losing it if their employer finds out they are unable to provide proof of residency or citizenship. Many look towards agencies that do not ask for identification, but those jobs are often unreliable. In order to prevent themselves from being detained and deported, many have to work under exploitation. In a study, a participant reported "If someone knows that you don't have the papers ... that person is a danger. Many people will con them ... if they know you don't have the papers, with everything they say 'hey I'm going to call immigration on you.'". These conditions lower the income that Hispanic families bring to their household and some find living each day very difficult. When an undocumented parent is deported or detained, income will be lowered significantly if the other parent also supports the family financially. The parent who is left has to look after the family and might find working difficult to manage along with other responsibilities. Even if families aren't separated, Hispanics are constantly living in fear that they will lose their economic footing. Living in poverty has been linked to depression, low self-esteem, loneliness, crime activities and frequent drug use among youth. Families with low incomes are unable to afford adequate housing and some of them are evicted. The environment in which the children of undocumented immigrants grow up in is often composed of poor air quality, noise, and toxins which prevent healthy development. Furthermore, these neighborhoods are prone to violence and gang activities, forcing the families to live in constant fear which can contribute to the development of PTSD, aggression and depression.


Economic outlook


Median income

In 2017, the US Census reported the median household incomes of Hispanic Americans to be $50,486. This is the third consecutive annual increase in median household income for Hispanic-origin households.


Poverty

According to the US Census, the poverty rate Hispanics was 18.3 percent in 2017, down from 19.4 percent in 2016. Hispanics accounted for 10.8 million individuals in poverty. In comparison, the average poverty rates in 2017 for non-Hispanic white Americans was 8.7 percent with 17 million individuals in poverty, Asian Americans was 10.0 percent with 2 million individuals in poverty, and African Americans was 21.2 percent with 9 million individuals in poverty. Among the largest Hispanic groups during 2015 was: Honduran Americans & Dominican Americans (27%), Guatemalan Americans (26%), Puerto Ricans (24%), Mexican Americans (23%), Salvadoran Americans (20%), Cuban Americans and Venezuelan Americans (17%), Ecuadorian Americans (15%), Nicaraguan Americans (14%), Colombian Americans (13%), Argentinian Americans (11%) and Peruvian Americans (10%). Poverty affects many underrepresented students as racial/ethnic minorities tend to stay isolated within pockets of low-income communities. This results in several inequalities, such as "school offerings, teacher quality, curriculum, counseling and all manner of things that both keep students engaged in school and prepare them to graduate". In the case of Hispanics, the poverty rate for Hispanic children in 2004 was 28.6 percent. Moreover, with this lack of resources, schools reproduce these inequalities for generations to come. In order to assuage poverty, many Hispanic families can turn to social and community services as resources.


Cultural matters

The geographic, political, social, economic and racial diversity of Hispanic Americans makes all Hispanics very different depending on their family heritage and/or national origin. Many times, there are many cultural similarities between Hispanics from neighboring countries than from more distant countries, ie Spanish Caribbean, Southern Cone, Central America etc. Yet several features tend to unite Hispanics from these diverse backgrounds.


Language


Spanish

As one of the most important uniting factors of Hispanic Americans, Spanish is an important part of Hispanic culture. Teaching Spanish to children is often one of the most valued skills taught amongst Hispanic families. Spanish is not only closely tied with the person's family, heritage, and overall culture, but valued for increased opportunities in business and one's future professional career. A 2013 Pew Research survey showed that 95% of Hispanics adults said "it's important that future generations of Hispanics speak Spanish". Given the United States' proximity to other Spanish-speaking countries, Spanish is being passed on to future American generations. Amongst second-generation Hispanics, 80% speak fluent Spanish, and amongst third-generation Hispanics, 40% speak fluent Spanish. Spanish is also the most popular language taught in the United States. Hispanics have revived the
Spanish language in the United States Spanish is the second most spoken language in the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of ...
, first brought to
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
during the Spanish colonial period in the 16th century. Spanish is the oldest European language in the United States, spoken uninterruptedly for four and a half centuries, since the founding of Saint Augustine, Florida in 1565. Today, 90% of all Hispanics speak English, and at least 78% speak fluent Spanish. Additionally, 2.8 million non-Hispanic Americans also speak Spanish at home for a total of 41.1 million. With 40% of Hispanic Americans being immigrants, and with many of the 60% who are US-born being the children or grandchildren of immigrants,
bilingualism Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...
is the norm in the community at large. At home, at least 69% of all Hispanics over the age of five are bilingual in English and Spanish, whereas up to 22% are monolingual English-speakers, and 9% are monolingual Spanish speakers. Another 0.4% speak a language other than English and Spanish at home. [There were 39.5 million Hispanic and Latino Americans aged 5 or more in 2006. 8.5 million of them, or 22%, spoke only English at home, and another 156,000, or 0.4%, spoke neither English nor Spanish at home. The other 30.8 million, or 78%, spoke Spanish at home. Of these, 3.7 million spoke no English, while the overwhelming majority, 27.2 million, did, at these levels: 15.5 million "very well", 5.8 million "well", and 5.9 million "not well". These 27.2 million bilingual speakers represented 69% of all (39.5 million) Hispanic and Latino Americans aged five or over in 2006, while the 3.7 million monolingual Spanish-speakers represented 9%.]


American Spanish dialects

The Spanish dialects spoken in the United States differ depending on the country of origin of the person or the person's family heritage. However, generally, Spanish spoken in the Southwest is Mexican Spanish or Chicano Spanish. A variety of Spanish native to the Southwest spoken by descendants of the early Spanish colonists in New Mexico and Colorado is known as Traditional
New Mexican Spanish New Mexican Spanish ( es, español neomexicano, novomexicano) refers to a variety of Spanish spoken in the United States in New Mexico and the southern part of the state of Colorado. It includes a Traditional dialect spoken generally by the Hi ...
. One of the major distinctions of Traditional New Mexican Spanish is its use of distinct vocabulary and grammatical forms that make
New Mexican Spanish New Mexican Spanish ( es, español neomexicano, novomexicano) refers to a variety of Spanish spoken in the United States in New Mexico and the southern part of the state of Colorado. It includes a Traditional dialect spoken generally by the Hi ...
unique amongst Spanish dialects. The Spanish spoken in the
East Coast East Coast may refer to: Entertainment * East Coast hip hop, a subgenre of hip hop * East Coast (ASAP Ferg song), "East Coast" (ASAP Ferg song), 2017 * East Coast (Saves the Day song), "East Coast" (Saves the Day song), 2004 * East Coast FM, a ra ...
is generally Caribbean Spanish and is heavily influenced by the Spanish of Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. Isleño Spanish, descended from Canarian Spanish, is the historic Spanish dialect spoken by the descendants of the earliest Spanish colonists beginning in the 18th century in Louisiana. Spanish spoken elsewhere throughout the country varies, although is generally Mexican Spanish. Heritage Spanish speakers tend to speak Spanish with near-native level phonology, but a more limited command of morphosyntax. Hispanics who speak Spanish as a second language often speak with English accents.


Spanglish and English dialects

Hispanics have influenced the way Americans speak with the introduction of many Spanish words into the English language. Amongst younger generations of Hispanics, Spanglish, a term for any mix of Spanish and English, is common in speaking. As they are fluent in both languages, speakers will often switch between Spanish and English throughout the conversation. Spanglish is particularly common in Hispanic-majority cities and communities such as Miami, Hialeah, San Antonio, Los Angeles and parts of New York City. Hispanics have also influenced the way English is spoken in the United States. In Miami, for example, the Miami dialect has evolved as the most common form of English spoken and heard in Miami today. This is a native dialect of English, and was developed amongst second and third generations of Cuban Americans in Miami. Today, it is commonly heard everywhere throughout the city.
Gloria Estefan Gloria Estefan (; born Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García; born 1 September 1957) is a Cuban-American singer, actress, and businesswoman. Estefan is a seven-time Grammy Award winner, a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, and has been ...
and
Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; (born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa and became the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade. By the ...
are examples of people who speak with the Miami dialect. Another major English dialect, is spoken by Chicanos and
Tejano Tejanos (, ; singular: ''Tejano/a''; Spanish for "Texan", originally borrowed from the Caddo ''tayshas'') are the residents of the state of Texas who are culturally descended from the Mexican population of Tejas and Coahuila that lived in the ...
s in the
Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, Ne ...
, called Chicano English. George Lopez and Selena are examples of speakers of Chicano English. An English dialect spoken by Puerto Ricans and other Hispanic groups is called New York Latino English;
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...
and
Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar Cephus (, ; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper and songwriter. She first gained popularity as an influencer on Vine and Instagram. From 2015 to early 2017, she appeared as ...
are examples of people who speak with the New York Latino dialect. When speaking in English, American Hispanics may often insert Spanish tag and filler items such as , , and , into sentences as a marker of ethnic identity and solidarity. The same often occurs with grammatical words like .


Religion

According to a
Pew 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 ...
study which was conducted in 2019, the majority of Hispanic Americans are Christians (72%), Among American Hispanics, as of 2018–19, 47% are Catholic, 24% are Protestant, 1% are Mormon, less than 1% are
Orthodox Christian Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churche ...
, 3% are members of non-Christian faiths, and 23% are unaffiliated.In U.S., Decline of Christianity Continues at Rapid Pace
Pew Research Center (October 17, 2019).
The proportion of Hispanics who are Catholic has dropped from 2009 (when it was 57%), while the proportion of unaffiliated Hispanics has increased since 2009 (when it was 15%). Among Hispanic Protestant community, most are evangelical, but some belong to mainline denominations.The Shifting Religious Identity of Latinos in the United States
Pew Research Center (May 7, 2014).
Compared to Catholic, unaffiliated, and mainline Protestant Hispanics; Evangelical Protestant Hispanics are substantially more likely to attend services weekly, pray daily, and adhere to biblical liberalism. As of 2014, about 67% of Hispanic Protestants and about 52% of Hispanic Catholics were renewalist, meaning that they described themselves as Pentecosal or charismatic Christians (in the Catholic tradition, called Catholic charismatic renewal). Catholic affiliation is much higher among first-generation Hispanic immigrants than it is among second and third-generation Hispanic immigrants, who exhibit a fairly high rate of conversion to Protestantism or the unaffiliated camp. According to
Andrew Greeley Andrew M. Greeley (February 5, 1928 – May 29, 2013) was an American Catholic priest, sociologist, journalist and popular novelist. Greeley was a professor of sociology at the University of Arizona and the University of Chicago, and a res ...
, as many as 600,000 American Hispanics leave Catholicism for Protestant churches every year, and this figure is much higher in Texas and Florida. Hispanic Catholics are developing youth and social programs to retain members. Hispanics make up a substantial proportion (almost 40%) of Catholics in the United States,Elizabeth Dias
"U.S. Catholic Bishops Elect Hispanic Immigrant as Leader"
''The New York Times'' (November 12, 2019).
although the number of American Hispanic
priests A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in p ...
is low relative to Hispanic membership in the church. In 2019, José Horacio Gómez, Archbishop of Los Angeles and a naturalized American citizen born in Mexico, was elected as president of the
US Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...
.


Media

The United States is home to thousands of Spanish-language media outlets, which range in size from giant commercial and some non-commercial broadcasting networks and major magazines with circulations numbering in the millions, to low-power AM radio stations with listeners numbering in the hundreds. There are hundreds of Internet media outlets targeting US Hispanic consumers. Some of the outlets are online versions of their printed counterparts and some online exclusively. Increased use of Spanish-language media leads to increased levels of group consciousness, according to survey data. The differences in attitudes are due to the diverging goals of Spanish-language and English-language media. The effect of using Spanish-language media serves to promote a sense of group consciousness among Hispanics by reinforcing roots in the Hispanic world and the commonalities among Hispanics of varying national origin. The first Hispanic-American owned major
film studio A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company or motion picture company that has its own privately owned studio facility or facilities that are used to make films, which is handled by the production ...
in the United States is based in Atlanta, Georgia. In 2017, Ozzie and Will Areu purchased Tyler Perry's former studio to establish Areu Bros. Studios.


Radio

Spanish language radio is the largest non-English broadcasting media. While other foreign language broadcasting declined steadily, Spanish broadcasting grew steadily from the 1920s to the 1970s. The 1930s were boom years. The early success depended on the concentrated geographical audience in Texas and the Southwest. American stations were close to Mexico which enabled a steady circular flow of entertainers, executives and technicians, and stimulated the creative initiatives of Hispanic radio executives, brokers, and advertisers. Ownership was increasingly concentrated in the 1960s and 1970s. The industry sponsored the now-defunct trade publication ''Sponsor'' from the late 1940s to 1968. Spanish-language radio has influenced American and Hispanic discourse on key current affairs issues such as citizenship and immigration.


Networks

Notable Hispanic-oriented media outlets include: * CNN en Español, a Spanish-language news network based in Atlanta, Georgia; * ESPN Deportes and Fox Deportes, two Spanish-language sports television networks. * Telemundo, the second-largest Spanish-language television network in the United States, with affiliates in nearly every major U.S. market, and numerous affiliates internationally; ** TeleXitos an American Spanish language digital multicast television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises. **
Universo Universo is a Legion of Super-Heroes supervillain in the 30th and 31st centuries of the DC Comics universe. He was created by Jim Shooter and Curt Swan, and first appeared in ''Adventure Comics'' #349 (October 1966). Pre-Zero Hour Universo first ...
, a cable network that produces content for U.S.-born Hispanic audiences; * Univisión, the largest Spanish-language television network in the United States, with affiliates in nearly every major U.S. market, and numerous affiliates internationally. It is the country's fourth-largest network overall; **
UniMás UniMás (, stylized as ''UNIMÁS'', and originally known as TeleFutura from its launch on January 14, 2002, to January 6, 2013) is an American Spanish free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. The network's programming, which is ...
, an American Spanish language free-to-air television network owned by Univision Communications. ** Fusion TV, an English television channel targeting Hispanic audiences with news and satire programming; ** Galavisión, a Spanish-language television channel targeting Hispanic audiences with general entertainment programming; * Estrella TV, an American Spanish-language broadcast television network owned by the Estrella Media. * V-me, a Spanish-language television network; ** Primo TV, an English-language cable channel aimed at Hispanic youth.; * Azteca América, a Spanish-language television network in the United States, with affiliates in nearly every major U.S. market, and numerous affiliates internationally; * Fuse, a former music channel that merged with the Hispanic-oriented NuvoTV in 2015. ** FM, a music-centric channel that replaced NuvoTV following the latter's merger with Fuse in 2015. *
3ABN The Three Angels Broadcasting Network, or 3ABN, is a Christian media television and radio network which broadcasts Seventh-day Adventist religious and health-oriented programming, based in West Frankfort, Illinois, United States. Although it is ...
Latino, a Spanish-language Christian television network based in West Frankfort, Illinois; *
TBN Enlace USA Enlace is a Latin American Christian-based broadcast television network. The network primarily broadcasts faith-based programming targeted to the Hispanic community. Enlace's primary headquarters are in San José, Costa Rica, with studios, office ...
, a Spanish-language Christian television network based in Tustin, California;


Print

* '' La Opinión'', a Spanish-language daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California and distributed throughout the six counties of Southern California. It is the largest Spanish-language newspaper in the United States * '' El Nuevo Herald'' and ''Diario Las Américas'', Spanish-language daily newspapers serving the greater Miami, Florida, market * '' El Tiempo Latino'' a Spanish-language free-circulation weekly newspaper published in Washington, D.C. * '' Latina'', a magazine for
bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...
, bicultural Hispanic women * '' People en Español'', a Spanish-language magazine counterpart of '' People'' * '' Vida Latina'', a Spanish-language entertainment magazine distributed throughout the Southern United States


Sports and music

Because of different cultures throughout the Hispanic world, there are various music forms throughout Hispanic countries, with different sounds and origins. Many Hispanics prefer musical genres from their home countries than music from the United States. Mostly, the recent arrivals listened to Spanish music, while Hispanics who been in the United States for generations tend to listen more to English music. Reggaeton and Hip hop are genres that are most popular to Hispanic youth in the United States.
Soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
is a common sport for Hispanics from outside of the Caribbean region, particularly immigrants. Baseball is a common among Caribbean Hispanics. Other popular sports include Boxing,
Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
, and Basketball.


Cuisine

Hispanic food, particularly Mexican food, has influenced American cuisine and eating habits.
Mexican cuisine Mexican cuisine consists of the cooking cuisines and traditions of the modern country of Mexico. Its earliest roots lie in Mesoamerican cuisine. Its ingredients and methods begin with the first agricultural communities such as the Olmec and M ...
has become so mainstream in American culture that many no longer see it as an ethnic food. Across the United States, tortillas and salsa are arguably becoming as common as hamburger buns and ketchup. Tortilla chips have surpassed potato chips in annual sales, and plantain chips popular in
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
cuisines have continued to increase sales. Tropical fruit, such as
mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...
,
guava Guava () is a common tropical fruit cultivated in many tropical and subtropical regions. The common guava ''Psidium guajava'' (lemon guava, apple guava) is a small tree in the myrtle family ( Myrtaceae), native to Mexico, Central America, the ...
and passion fruit (maracuyá), have become more popular and are now common flavors in desserts, candies and food dishes in the United States. Due to the large Mexican-American population in the Southwestern United States, and its proximity to Mexico, Mexican food there is believed to be some of the best in the United States. Cubans brought Cuban cuisine to Miami and today, cortaditos, pastelitos de guayaba and empanadas are common mid-day snacks in the city. Cuban culture has changed Miami's coffee drinking habits, and today a café con leche or a cortadito is commonly had at one of the city's numerous coffee shops. The Cuban sandwich, developed in Miami, is now a staple and icon of the city's cuisine and culture.


Familial situations


Family life and values

Hispanic culture places a strong value on family, and is commonly taught to Hispanic children as one of the most important values in life. Statistically, Hispanic families tend to have larger and closer knit families than the American average. Hispanic families tend to prefer to live near other family members. This may mean that three or sometimes four generations may be living in the same household or near each other, although four generations is uncommon in the United States. The role of
grandparent Grandparents, individually known as grandmother and grandfather, are the parents of a person's father or mother – paternal or maternal. Every sexually-reproducing living organism who is not a genetic chimera has a maximum of four genetic gra ...
s is believed to be very important in the upbringing of children. Hispanics tend to be very group-oriented, and an emphasis is placed on the well-being of the family above the individual. The extended family plays an important part of many Hispanic families, and frequent social, family gatherings are common. Traditional rites of passages, particularly Roman Catholic
sacrament A sacrament is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite that is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments ...
s: such as baptisms, birthdays, First Holy Communions,
quinceañera A (also , , , and ) is a celebration of a girl's 15th birthday. It has pre-Columbian roots in Mexico (Aztecs) and is widely celebrated by girls throughout Latin America. The girl celebrating her 15th birthday is a (; gender (linguistics), ...
s,
Confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...
s,
graduation Graduation is the awarding of a diploma to a student by an educational institution. It may also refer to the ceremony that is associated with it. The date of the graduation ceremony is often called graduation day. The graduation ceremony is a ...
s and weddings are all popular moments of family gatherings and celebrations in Hispanic families. Education is another important priority for Hispanic families. Education is seen as the key towards continued upward mobility in the United States among Hispanic families. A 2010 study by the Associated Press showed that Hispanics place a higher emphasis on education than the average American. Hispanics expect their children to graduate university. Hispanic youth today stay at home with their parents longer than before. This is due to more years spent studying and the difficulty of finding a paid job that meets their aspirations.


Intermarriage

Hispanic Americans, like many immigrant groups before them, are out-marrying at high rates. Out-marriages comprised 17.4% of all existing Hispanic marriages in 2008.Pew Social Trends: "Marrying Out"
June 15, 2010
The rate was higher for newlyweds (which excludes immigrants who are already married): Among all newlyweds in 2010, 25.7% of all Hispanics married a non-Hispanic (this compares to out-marriage rates of 9.4% of white people, 17.1% of black people, and 27.7% of Asians). The rate was larger for native-born Hispanics, with 36.2% of native-born Hispanics (both men and women) out-marrying compared to 14.2% of foreign-born Hispanics.Pew Research Social & Demographic Trends: "The Rise of Intermarriage - Rates, Characteristics Vary by Race and Gender" by Wendy Wang
February 16, 2012
The difference is attributed to recent immigrants tending to marry within their immediate immigrant community due to commonality of language, proximity, familial connections, and familiarity. In 2008, 81% of Hispanics who married out married non-Hispanic white people, 9% married non-Hispanic black people, 5% non-Hispanic Asians, and the remainder married non-Hispanic, multi-racial partners. Of approximately 275,500 new interracial or interethnic marriages in 2010, 43.3% were white-Hispanic (compared to white-Asian at 14.4%, white-black at 11.9%, and other combinations at 30.4%; "other combinations" consists of pairings between different minority groups and multi-racial people). Unlike those for marriage to black people and Asians, intermarriage rates of Hispanics to white people do not vary by gender. The combined median earnings of white/Hispanic couples are lower than those of white/white couples but higher than those of Hispanic/Hispanic couples. 23% of Hispanic men who married white women have a college degree compared to only 10% of Hispanic men who married a Hispanic woman. 33% of Hispanic women who married a white husband are college-educated compared to 13% of Hispanic women who married a Hispanic man. Attitudes among non-Hispanics toward intermarriage with Hispanics are mostly favorable, with 81% of white people, 76% of Asians and 73% of black people "being fine" with a member of their family marrying a Hispanic and an additional 13% of white people, 19% of Asians and 16% of black people "being bothered but accepting of the marriage". Only 2% of white people, 4% of Asians, and 5% of black people would not accept a marriage of their family member to a Hispanic. Hispanic attitudes toward intermarriage with non-Hispanics are likewise favorable, with 81% "being fine" with marriages to white people and 73% "being fine" with marriages to black people. A further 13% admitted to "being bothered but accepting" of a marriage of a family member to a white and 22% admitted to "being bothered but accepting" of a marriage of a family member to a black. Only 5% of Hispanics objected outright marriage of a family member to a non-Hispanic black and 2% to a non-Hispanic white. Unlike intermarriage with other racial groups, intermarriage with non-Hispanic black people varies by nationality of origin. Puerto Ricans have by far the highest rates of intermarriage with black people, of all major Hispanic national groups, who also has the highest overall intermarriage rate among Hispanics. Cubans have the highest rate of intermarriage with non-Hispanic white people, of all major Hispanic national groups, and are the most assimilated into white American culture.


Cultural adjustment

As Hispanic migrants become the norm in the United States, the effects of this migration on the identity of these migrants and their kin becomes most evident in the younger generations. Crossingthe borders changes the identities of both the youth and their families. Often "one must pay special attention to the role expressive culture plays as both entertainment and as a site in which identity is played out, empowered, and reformed" because it is "sometimes in opposition to dominant norms and practices and sometimes in conjunction with them".Hondagneu-Sotelo, Pierrette. 2004. Gender and the Latino experience in Late-Twentieth-Century America. In The Columbia History of Latinos in the United States since 1960. D.G. Gutiérrez, ed. New York: Columbia University Press. The exchange of their culture of origin with American culture creates a dichotomy within the values that the youth find important, therefore changing what it means to be Hispanic in the global sphere.


Transnationalism

Along with feeling that they are neither from the country of their ethnic background nor the United States, a new identity within the United States is formed called '' latinidad''. This is especially seen in cosmopolitan social settings like New York City, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Underway is "the intermeshing of different Latino subpopulations has laid the foundations for the emergence and ongoing evolution of a strong sense of ''latinidad"'' which establishes a "sense of cultural affinity and identity deeply rooted in what many Hispanics perceive to be a shared historical, spiritual, aesthetic and linguistic heritage, and a growing sense of cultural affinity and solidarity in the social context of the United States." This unites Hispanics as one, creating cultural kin with other Hispanic ethnicities.


Gender roles

In Hispanic culture, the role of a man is to be the sole breadwinner for his family, he must work hard to provide. Hispanic men demand respect and obedience and carry the responsibility of being the head of the family, in which he is tasked with keeping his family composed and honorable in the eyes of society. A man feels pressure from his community to prove his manhood and manliness, leading the male to exemplify behaviors of machismo. There are two sides to machismo, the man who has a strong work ethic and lives up to his responsibilities, or the man who heavily drinks and therefore displays acts of unpleasant behavior towards his family. To display machismo is to assert male dominance in all spheres, especially in a man's relationship with his female partner; the concept is enforced through convincing males into comporting themselves with a '' macho'' (literally, "male" or "masculine") archetype in order to establish respect, dominance, and manliness in their social ambits. The traditional roles of women in a Hispanic community are of housewife and mother, a woman's role is to cook, clean, and care for her children and husband; putting herself and her needs last. The typical structure of a Hispanic family forces women to defer authority to her husband, allowing him to make the important decisions, that both the woman and children must abide by. A woman must not question her husband's authority nor go against him, a woman is expected to remain submissive, take orders, and tolerate any behavior displayed by her husband. In traditional Hispanic households, women and young girls are homebodies or ''muchachas de la casa'' ("girls of the house"), showing that they abide "by the cultural norms ... frespectability, chastity, and family honor svalued by the ispaniccommunity". A woman occupied with all the tasks required to support her household and family is often unable to work or become educated, being outside the home is deemed unacceptable and wrong. Migration to the United States can change the identity of Hispanic youth in various ways, including how they carry their gendered identities. However, when Hispanic women come to the United States, they tend to adapt to the perceived social norms of this new country and their social location changes as they become more independent and able to live without the financial support of their families or partners. The unassimilated community views these adapting women as being ''de la calle'' ("of r fromthe street"), transgressive, and sexually promiscuous. A women's motive for pursuing an education or career is to prove she can care and make someone of herself, breaking the traditional gender role that a Hispanic woman can only serve as a mother or housewife, thus changing a woman's role in society. Some Hispanic families in the United States "deal with young women's failure to adhere to these culturally prescribed norms of proper gendered behavior in a variety of ways, including sending them to live in ...
he sending country He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...
with family members, regardless of whether or not ...
he young women He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...
are sexually active". Now there has been a rise in the Hispanic community where both men and women are known to work and split the household chores among themselves; women are encouraged to gain an education, degree, and pursue a career; men and women are both beginning to be seen as equal members in the Hispanic community.


Sexuality

In Hispanic culture it is expected for men to partake only in heterosexual relationships, some men often seek multiple female partners to further prove their sexuality and masculinity. A man is expected to lead a heterosexual life while upholding traditional values. The Hispanic community rejects men who identify themselves as homosexuals, homophobia is deeply embedded in these communities, forcing gay men to hide and remain ashamed of their sexuality. Due to the homophobia present in the Hispanic community, gay men feel a high sense of shame and guilt which leads to risky sexual behavior, leaving them at a risk for HIV and other STDs. The socially constructed behaviors of machismoreinforce only traditional gender roles and sexual preferences; while simultaneously upholding homophobia and prejudice for those that identify as lesbians and gay men. With the Catholic Church remaining a large influence on the Hispanic culture, the subject of promiscuity and sexuality is often considered taboo. There is a lack of conversation and communication regarding sexuality and sexual behavior in these communities, leaving Hispanic adolescents at a higher risk of STDs and unwanted pregnancies. It is believed that women should not participate in or know about sexual behaviors which produce a sense of naivety regarding the topic and results in discomfort and embarrassment. It is taught in many Hispanic cultures that the best way to remain pure of sin and not become pregnant is to remain celibate and heterosexual until marriage. All are to be straight and women are to be virgins. A woman must carry herself like Mary in order to receive respect and keep the family's honor. Marianismo dictates the traditional role of a Hispanic women, a woman is expected to remain sexually pure, submissive, and is seen as an object of pleasure for men. The Catholic religion preaches for heterosexual marriages and the preservation of family; and condemns and stigmatizes homosexual or bisexual relationships. Latino sexual minorities who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender often do not reveal their sexual preferences out of fear of being excluded or rejected by their community.


Relations towards other minority groups

As a result of the rapid growth of the Hispanic population, there has been some tension with other minority populations, especially the African-American population, as Hispanics have increasingly moved into once exclusively black areas. There has also been increasing cooperation between minority groups to work together to attain political influence. * A 2007 UCLA study reported that 51% of black people felt that Hispanics were taking jobs and political power from them and 44% of Hispanics said they feared African-Americans, identifying them (African-Americans) with high crime rates. That said, large majorities of Hispanics credited American black people and the civil rights movement with making life easier for them in the United States. * A
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 ...
poll from 2006 showed that black people overwhelmingly felt that Hispanic immigrants were hard working (78%) and had strong family values (81%); 34% believed that immigrants took jobs from Americans, 22% of black people believed that they had directly lost a job to an immigrant, and 34% of black people wanted immigration to be curtailed. The report also surveyed three cities: Chicago (with its well-established Hispanic community); Washington, D.C. (with a less-established but quickly growing Hispanic community); and Raleigh-Durham (with a very new but rapidly growing Hispanic community). The results showed that a significant proportion of black people in those cities wanted immigration to be curtailed: Chicago (46%), Raleigh-Durham (57%), and Washington, DC (48%). * Per a 2008 University of California, Berkeley Law School research brief, a recurring theme to black/Hispanic tensions is the growth in "contingent, flexible, or contractor labor", which is increasingly replacing long term steady employment for jobs on the lower-rung of the pay scale (which had been disproportionately filled by black people). The transition to this employment arrangement corresponds directly with the growth in the Hispanic immigrant population. The perception is that this new labor arrangement has driven down wages, removed benefits, and rendered temporary, jobs that once were stable (but also benefiting consumers who receive lower-cost services) while passing the costs of labor (healthcare and indirectly education) onto the community at large. * A 2008
Gallup Gallup may refer to: *Gallup, Inc., a firm founded by George Gallup, well known for its opinion poll *Gallup (surname), a surname *Gallup, New Mexico, a city in New Mexico, United States **Gallup station, an Amtrak train in downtown Gallup, New Me ...
poll indicated that 60% of Hispanics and 67% of black people believe that good relations exist between US black people and HispanicsGallup: "White people May Exaggerate Black-Hispanic Tensions" by Lydia Saad
July 17, 2008
while only 29% of black people, 36% of Hispanics and 43% of white people, say black–Hispanic relations are bad. * In 2009, in
Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...
, Hispanics committed 30% of the hate crimes against black victims and black people committed 70% of the hate crimes against Hispanics.


Politics


Political affiliations

Hispanics differ on their political views depending on their location and background. The majority (57%) either identify as or support the Democrats, and 23% identify as
Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
. This 34-point gap as of December 2007 was an increase from the gap of 21 points 16 months earlier. While traditionally a key
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
constituency at-large, beginning in the early 2010s, Hispanics have begun to split between the Democrats and the
Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...
. In a 2022 study, it was found that 64% of Latinos surveyed had positive attitudes towards President Obama’s executive actions on immigration, which was notably four percentage points lower than that of non-Hispanic Black respondents. It was also noted that support for undocumented immigrants was lowest among Latinos living in developing 'bedroom communities' or newly built suburbs designed for commuters. This was also the case for Latinos of affluent income levels, however they were still most likely to display a positive attitude towards undocumented immigrants, especially when compared to their non-Hispanic white counterparts. Cuban Americans, Colombian Americans, Chilean Americans, and Venezuelan Americans tend to favor conservative political ideologies and support the Republicans. Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Dominican Americans tend to favor progressive political ideologies and support the Democrats. However, because the latter groups are far more numerous—as, again, Mexican Americans alone are 64% of Hispanics—the Democratic Party is considered to be in a far stronger position with the ethnic group overall. Some political organizations associated with Hispanic Americans are League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the United Farm Workers, the Cuban American National Foundation and the National Institute for Latino Policy.


Political impact

The United States has a population of over 60 million of Hispanic Americans, of whom 27 million are citizens eligible to vote (13% of total eligible voters); therefore, Hispanics have a very important effect on presidential elections since the vote difference between two main parties is usually around 4%.


Elections of 1996-2006

In the 1996 presidential election, 72% of Hispanics backed President Bill Clinton. In
2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
, the Democratic total fell to 62%, and went down again in
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
, with Democrat John Kerry winning Hispanics 54-44 against Bush. Hispanics in the West, especially in California, were much stronger for the Democratic Party than in Texas and Florida. California Hispanics voted 63–32 for Kerry in 2004, and both Arizona and New Mexico Hispanics by a smaller 56–43 margin. Texas Hispanics were split nearly evenly, favoring Kerry 50–49 over their favorite son candidate and Florida Hispanics (who are mostly Cuban American) backed Bush, by a 54–45 margin. In the
2006 midterm election The 2006 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 7, 2006, in the middle of Republican President George W. Bush's second term. Democrats won control of both houses of Congress, which was the first and only time either party did so ...
, however, due to the unpopularity of the Iraq War, the heated debate concerning illegal Hispanic immigration and Republican-related Congressional scandals, Hispanics went as strongly Democratic as they have since the Clinton years. Exit polls showed the group voting for Democrats by a lopsided 69–30 margin, with Florida Hispanics for the first time split evenly. The runoff election in Texas' 23rd congressional district was seen as a bellwether of Hispanic politics. Democrat Ciro Rodriguez's unexpected (and unexpectedly decisive) defeat of Republican incumbent Henry Bonilla was seen as proof of a leftward lurch among Hispanic voters; majority-Hispanic counties overwhelmingly backed Rodriguez and majority European-American counties overwhelmingly backed Bonilla.


Elections 2008-2012

In the 2008 Presidential election's Democratic primary, Hispanics participated in larger numbers than before, with Hillary Clinton receiving most of the group's support. Pundits discussed whether Hispanics would not vote for Barack Obama because he was African-American. Hispanics voted 2 to 1 for Mrs. Clinton, even among the younger demographic. In other groups, younger voters went overwhelmingly for Obama."The Hispanic Vote in the 2008 Democratic Presidential Primaries"
February 21, 2008, Pew Hispanic Center
Among Hispanics, 28% said race was involved in their decision, as opposed to 13% for (non-Hispanic) white people. Obama defeated Clinton. In the matchup between Obama and Republican candidate
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
, Hispanics supported Obama with 59% to McCain's 29% in the June 30
Gallup Gallup may refer to: *Gallup, Inc., a firm founded by George Gallup, well known for its opinion poll *Gallup (surname), a surname *Gallup, New Mexico, a city in New Mexico, United States **Gallup station, an Amtrak train in downtown Gallup, New Me ...
tracking poll. This was higher than expected, since McCain had been a leader of the comprehensive immigration reform effort (John McCain was born in Panama to parents who were serving in the US Navy, but raised in the United States). However, McCain had retreated from reform during the Republican primary, damaging his standing among Hispanics. Obama took advantage of the situation by running ads in Spanish highlighting McCain's reversal. In the general election, 67% of Hispanics voted for Obama. with a relatively strong turnout in states such as Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada and Virginia, helping Obama carry those formerly Republican states. Obama won 70% of non-Cuban Hispanics and 35% of the traditionally Republican Cuban Americans who have a strong presence in Florida. The relative growth of non-Cuban vs Cuban Hispanics also contributed to his carrying Florida's Hispanics with 57% of the vote. While employment and the economy were top concerns for Hispanics, almost 90% of Hispanic voters rated immigration as "somewhat important" or "very important" in a poll taken after the election.Page 1
/ref> Republican opposition to the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 had damaged the party's appeal to Hispanics, especially in swing states such as Florida, Nevada and New Mexico. In a Gallup poll of Hispanic voters taken in the final days of June 2008, only 18% of participants identified as Republicans. Hispanics voted even more heavily for Democrats in the 2012 election with the Democratic incumbent Barack Obama receiving 71% and the Republican challenger
Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...
receiving about 27% of the vote. Some Hispanic leaders were offended by remarks Romney made during a fundraiser, when he suggested that cultural differences and "the hand of providence" help explain why Israelis are more economically successful than Palestinians, and why similar economic disparities exist between other neighbors, such as the United States and Mexico, or Chile and Ecuador. A senior aide to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called the remarks racist, as did American political scientist
Angelo Falcón Angelo Falcón (June 23, 1951 – May 24, 2018) was a Puerto Rican political scientist best known for starting the Institute for Puerto Rican Policy (IPR) in New York City in the early 1980s, a nonprofit and nonpartisan policy center that fo ...
, president of the National Institute of Latino Policy.
Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...
father was born to American parents in a Mormon colony in
Chihuahua Chihuahua may refer to: Places *Chihuahua (state), a Mexican state **Chihuahua (dog), a breed of dog named after the state **Chihuahua cheese, a type of cheese originating in the state **Chihuahua City, the capital city of the state **Chihuahua Mun ...
, Mexico.


Elections 2014–present

"More convincing data" from the
2016 United States presidential election The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...
from the polling firm Latino Decisions indicates that Clinton received a higher share of the Hispanic vote, and Trump a lower share, than the Edison exit polls showed. Using wider, more geographically and linguistically representative sampling, Latino Decisions concluded that Clinton won 79% of Hispanic voters (also an improvement over Obama's share in 2008 and 2012), while Trump won only 18% (lower than previous Republicans such as Romney and McCain). Additionally, the 2016 Cooperative Congressional Election Study found that Clinton's share of the Hispanic vote was one percentage point higher than Obama's in 2012, while Trump's was seven percentage points lower than Romney's. On June 26, 2018,
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of th ...
, a millennial, won the
Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...
in New York's 14th congressional district covering parts of The Bronx and Queens in New York City, defeating the incumbent, Democratic Caucus Chair
Joe Crowley Joseph Crowley (born March 16, 1962) is an American politician and consultant who served as U.S. Representative from New York's 14th congressional district from 1999 to 2019. He was defeated by Democratic primary challenger Alexandria Ocasio ...
, in what has been described as the biggest upset victory in the 2018 midterm election season and at the age of 29 years, became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress. She is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and has been endorsed by various politically
progressive Progressive may refer to: Politics * Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform ** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context * Progressive realism, an American foreign policy par ...
organizations and individuals. According to a
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 ...
report, the 2020 election will be the first one when Hispanics are the largest racial or ethnic minority group in the electorate. A record 32 million Hispanics were projected to be eligible to vote in the presidential election, many of them first-time voters. On September 15, 2020, President
Donald J. Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
announces his intent to nominate and appoint Eduardo Verastegui, to be a member of the President's Advisory Commission on Hispanic Prosperity if re-elected after days of the Democratic convention. Hispanic communities across the United States were long held as a single voting bloc, but economic, geographic and
cultural Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human Society, societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, and habits of the ...
differences show stark divides in how Hispanic Americans have cast their ballots in 2020. Hispanics helped deliver Florida to Donald Trump in part because of Cuban Americans and Venezuelan Americans (along with smaller populations such as Nicaraguan Americans and Chilean Americans); President Trump's reelection campaign ran pushing a strong anti- socialism message as a strategy in Florida, to their success. However the perceived anti-immigrant rhetoric resonated with Arizona and the COVID-19 pandemic (Arizona being one of the states hardest hit by the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United States The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the Uni ...
). The takeaway may be this may be the last election cycle that the "
Hispanic vote The Latino vote or refers to the voting trends during elections in the United States by eligible voters of Latino Americans, Latino background. This phrase is usually mentioned by the media as a way to label voters of this ethnicity, and to opine th ...
" as a whole is more talked about instead of particular communities within it, such as Cubans, Puerto Ricans, Mexican Americans and so on. In Texas like in Arizona the Hispanic community mainly being Mexican American; one in three Texan voters is now Hispanic. Biden did win the Hispanic vote in those states. But in Texas, 41 percent to 47 percent of Hispanic voters backed Trump in several heavily Hispanic border counties in the Rio Grande Valley region, a Democratic stronghold. In Florida, Trump won 45 percent of the Hispanic vote, an 11-point improvement from his 2016 performance reported NBC News. Recognizing Hispanics as a population that can not only make a differences in swing states like Arizona and Texas or Florida, but also really across the country, even in places like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, the number of Hispanic eligible voters may be the reason for the thin margins. In 1984, 37 percent of Hispanics voted for
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
and 40 percent voted for George W. Bush in 2004. In Florida, even though Trump won Florida and gained Hispanic voters, Biden kept 53% of the Hispanic vote and Trump 45%. According to NBC News exit polls, 55% of Cuban Americans, 30% of Puerto Ricans and 48% of other Hispanics voted for Trump. Subsections of Hispanic voters have a range of historical influences vying to affect their votes. Cuban American voters, mostly concentrated in south Florida, tend to vote Republican in part because of their anathema for socialism, the party of
Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
's government that many of their families fled. Mexican Americans, however, have no such historical relationship with either party. Puerto Rican voters who have left the island might be influenced by the territory's move towards statehood, as a referendum for Trump's relief effort after Hurricane Maria, or regarding how it is taxed. Nationwide, Hispanics cast 16.6 million votes in 2020, an increase of 30.9% over the 2016 presidential election. After representative
Filemon Vela Jr. Filemón Bartolomé Vela Jr. ( ; born February 13, 1963) is an American lobbyist, lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2013 until his resignation in 2022. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Vela was also vic ...
resigned, Mayra Flores won a special election to succeed him, she won the election to the United States House of Representatives in June 2022. She will be the first Mexican-born woman to serve in the United States Congress.Svitek, Patrick
Republicans flip U.S. House seat in South Texas, historically a Democratic stronghold
, '' Texas Tribune'', June 14, 2022.


Notable contributions

Hispanic Americans have made distinguished contributions to the United States in all major fields, such as politics, the military, music,
film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
, literature, sports,
business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...
and
finance Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fina ...
, and science.


Arts and entertainment

In 1995, the American Latino Media Arts Award, or ALMA Award was created. It is a distinction given to Hispanic performers (actors, film and television directors and musicians) by the National Council of La Raza. The number of Latin nominees at the Grammy Awards lag behind. Talking to '' People'' magazine ahead of music's biggest night in 2021, Grammy nominees J Balvin and Ricky Martin reflected on what it is mean to continue to represent Hispanics at awards shows like the Grammys. Martin, who served as a pioneer for the "Latin crossover" in the '90s told "When you get nominated, it's the industry telling you, 'Hey Rick, you did a good job this year, congratulations.' Yes, I need that", the 49-year-old says. "When you walk into the studio, you say, 'This got a Grammy potential.' You hear the songs that do and the ones that don't. It's inevitable." Like Selena Gomez tapping into her roots, the influence Hispanics and reggaetón are having on the mainstream is undeniable.


Music

There are many Hispanic American musicians that have achieved international fame, such as Christopher Rios better known by his stage name Big Pun,
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...
, Joan Baez, Selena Gomez,
Demi Lovato Demetria Devonne Lovato ( ; born August 20, 1992), known as Demi Lovato, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. After appearing on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), Lovato rose to prominence for pl ...
, Fergie,
Pitbull Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was f ...
,
Victoria Justice Victoria Dawn Justice (born February 19, 1993) is an American actress and singer. She has received several accolades, including two Young Artist Awards and nominations for three Imagen Awards, an NAACP Image Award, and three Kids' Choice Awar ...
, Linda Ronstadt, Zack de la Rocha,
Gloria Estefan Gloria Estefan (; born Gloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García; born 1 September 1957) is a Cuban-American singer, actress, and businesswoman. Estefan is a seven-time Grammy Award winner, a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, and has been ...
,
Celia Cruz Úrsula Hilaria Celia de la Caridad Cruz Alfonso (21 October 1925 – 16 July 2003), known as Celia Cruz, was a naturalized Cuban-American singer and one of the most popular Latin artists of the 20th century. Cruz rose to fame in Cuba during t ...
, Tito Puente, Kat DeLuna, Selena, Ricky Martin,
Marc Anthony Marco Antonio Muñiz Rivera (born September 16, 1968), known professionally as Marc Anthony, is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is the top selling tropical salsa artist of all time. A three-time Grammy Award and six-time Latin Gra ...
,
Carlos Santana Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of Rock and roll and Latin American jazz. Its sound featured ...
, Christina Aguilera, Bruno Mars,
Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...
, Jerry García,
Dave Navarro David Michael Navarro (born June 7, 1967) is an American guitarist. He is best known as a member of the rock band Jane's Addiction, with whom he has recorded four studio albums. Between 1993 and 1998, Navarro was the guitarist of the Red Hot Ch ...
,
Santaye Santa Reyes known professionally as Santaye, is a Dominican singer-songwriter based in Miami. She began her music career in 2010. Several of Santaye's singles have charted on US Billboard Tropical Songs. She was twice nominated for the Lo Nuest ...
, Elvis Crespo, Romeo Santos, Tom Araya, Becky G, Juan Luis Guerra,
Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Almánzar Cephus (, ; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper and songwriter. She first gained popularity as an influencer on Vine and Instagram. From 2015 to early 2017, she appeared as ...
, Giselle Bellas, Bad Bunny, all of the members of
all-female band An all-female band is a musical group in popular music that is exclusively composed of female musicians. This is distinct from a girl group, in which the female members are solely vocalists, though this terminology is not universally followed. While ...
Go Betty Go Go Betty Go is an all-female pop punk band from Los Angeles that, along with bands such as Union 13, Los Abandoned, The Dollyrots, and Left Alone, have been prominent in the Southern California Chicano Punk scene that started in the mid-2000s an ...
, Camila Cabello, and two members of girl group Fifth Harmony: Lauren Jauregui and
Ally Brooke Allyson Brooke Hernandez (born July 7, 1993) is an American singer. She is a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony. Brooke began to establish herself in 2017 as a solo artist, featuring on Lost Kings' " Look at Us Now" with rapper ASAP Ferg. ...
. Hispanic music imported from Cuba ( chachachá, mambo, and
rhumba Rhumba, also known as ballroom rumba, is a genre of ballroom music and dance that appeared in the East Coast of the United States during the 1930s. It combined American big band music with Afro-Cuban rhythms, primarily the son cubano, but also co ...
) and Mexico ( ranchera and
mariachi Mariachi (, , ) is a genre of regional Mexican music that dates back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, t ...
) had brief periods of popularity during the 1950s. Examples of artists include
Celia Cruz Úrsula Hilaria Celia de la Caridad Cruz Alfonso (21 October 1925 – 16 July 2003), known as Celia Cruz, was a naturalized Cuban-American singer and one of the most popular Latin artists of the 20th century. Cruz rose to fame in Cuba during t ...
, who was a Cuban-American singer and the most popular Latin artist of the 20th century, gaining twenty-three gold albums during her career. Bill Clinton awarded her the National Medal of Arts in 1994. Among the Hispanic American musicians who were pioneers in the early stages of rock and roll were Ritchie Valens, who scored several hits, most notably " La Bamba" and Herman Santiago, who wrote the lyrics to the iconic rock and roll song " Why Do Fools Fall in Love". Songs that became popular in the United States and are heard during the holiday/Christmas season include "¿Dónde Está Santa Claus?", a novelty Christmas song with 12-year-old Augie Ríos which was a hit record in 1959 and featured the Mark Jeffrey Orchestra; and " Feliz Navidad" by José Feliciano. Miguel del Aguila wrote 116 works and has three Latin Grammy nominations. In 1986, ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' magazine introduced the
Hot Latin Songs The ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs (formerly Hot Latin Tracks and Hot Latin 50) is a record chart in the United States for Latin songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Since October 2012, chart rankings are based on digital sales, rad ...
chart which ranks the best-performing songs on Spanish-language radio stations in the United States. Seven years later, ''Billboard'' initiated the Top Latin Albums which ranks top-selling Latin albums in the United States. Similarly, the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
incorporated "Los Premios de Oro y Platino" (The Gold and Platinum Awards) to certify Latin recordings which contains at least 50% of its content recorded in Spanish. In 1989, Univision established the Lo Nuestro Awards which became the first award ceremony to recognize the most talented performers of Spanish-language music and was considered to be the "Hispanic Grammys". In 2000, the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (LARAS) established the Latin Grammy Awards to recognize musicians who perform in Spanish and Portuguese. Unlike The Recording Academy, LARAS extends its membership internationally to
Hispanophone Hispanophone and Hispanic refers to anything relating to the Spanish language (the Hispanosphere). In a cultural, rather than merely linguistic sense, the notion of "Hispanophone" goes further than the above definition. The Hispanic culture is th ...
and
Lusophone Lusophones ( pt, Lusófonos) are ethnic group, peoples that speak Portuguese language, Portuguese as a native language, native or as common second language and nations where Portuguese features prominently in society. Comprising an estimated 270 m ...
communities worldwide beyond the Americas, particularly the Iberian Peninsula. Becky G won favorite female Latin artist, a brand new category at the
AMA Ama or AMA may refer to: Ama Languages * Ama language (New Guinea) * Ama language (Sudan) People * Ama (Ama Kōhei), former ring name for sumo wrestler Harumafuji Kōhei * Mary Ama, a New Zealand artist * Shola Ama, a British singer * Ām ...
s in 2020. For the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, the academy announced several changes for different categories and rules: the category Latin Pop Album has been renamed Best Latin Pop or Urban Album, while Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album has been renamed Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album.


Film, radio, television, and theatre

American cinema has often reflected and propagated negative stereotypes towards foreign nationals and ethnic minorities. For example, Hispanics are largely depicted as sexualized figures such as the Hispanic macho or the Hispanic vixen, gang members, (illegal)
immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
s, or entertainers. However representation in Hollywood has enhanced in latter times of which it gained noticeable momentum in the 1990s and does not emphasize oppression, exploitation, or resistance as central themes. According to Ramírez Berg, third wave films "do not accentuate Chicano oppression or resistance; ethnicity in these films exists as one fact of several that shape characters' lives and stamps their personalities". Filmmakers like Edward James Olmos and Robert Rodriguez were able to represent the Hispanic American experience like none had on screen before, and actors like Hilary Swank, Michael Peña, Jordana Brewster, Ana de Armas, Jessica Alba,
Natalie Martinez Natalie Martinez is an American actress and model. She appeared in the 2008 film '' Death Race'', several music videos between 2003 and 2011, and two short-lived telenovelas in 2006 and 2007. Martinez starred in the single season of the crime d ...
and Jenna Ortega have become successful. In the last decade, minority filmmakers like Chris Weitz, Alfonso Gomez-Rejon and Patricia Riggen have been given applier narratives. Portrayal in films of them include '' La Bamba'' (1987), '' Selena'' (1997), '' The Mask of Zorro'' (1998), '' Goal II: Living the Dream'' (2007), '' The 33'' (2015), '' Ferdinand'' (2017), '' Dora and the Lost City of Gold'' (2019), and Josefina López's '' Real Women Have Curves'', originally a play which premiered in 1990 and was later released as a film in 2002. Hispanics have also contributed some prominent actors and others to the film industry. Of Puerto Rican origin: José Ferrer (the first Hispanic actor to win an acting Academy Award for his role in '' Cyrano de Bergerac''), Auliʻi Cravalho,
Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...
, Chita Rivera, Raul Julia,
Rosie Perez Rosa Perez (born September 6, 1964) is an American actress, choreographer, dancer, and activist. Her breakthrough came with her portrayal of Tina in the film ''Do the Right Thing'' (1989), followed by ''White Men Can't Jump'' (1992). Perez's perf ...
, Rosario Dawson, Esai Morales, Aubrey Plaza,
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...
, Joaquin Phoenix and Benicio del Toro. Of
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
origin:
Emile Kuri Emile Kuri (June 11, 1907 – October 10, 2000) was a Mexican-born American set decorator of Lebanese parentage. He won two Academy Awards and was nominated for six more in the category Best Art Direction. He was born in Cuernavaca, Morelo ...
(the first Hispanic to win an Academy Award – for Best Production Design – in 1949), Ramon Novarro,
Dolores del Río María de los Dolores Asúnsolo y López Negrete (3 August 1904 – 11 April 1983), known professionally as Dolores del Río (), was a Mexican actress. With a career spanning more than 50 years, she is regarded as the first major female Latin Am ...
, Lupe Vélez, Anthony Quinn, Ricardo Montalbán, Katy Jurado, Adrian Grenier, Jay Hernandez, Salma Hayek, Danny Trejo, Jessica Alba, Tessa Thompson, and Kate del Castillo. Of Cuban origin: Cesar Romero, Mel Ferrer, Andy García, Cameron Diaz,
María Conchita Alonso María Concepción Alonso Bustillo (born June 29, 1957), better known as María Conchita Alonso, is a singer, actress and former beauty queen. She has participated in film and television productions, and was nominated for the Independent Spirit ...
, William Levy, and Eva Mendes. Of Dominican origin: Maria Montez and
Zoe Saldana Zoe (also ZOE, Zoë, Zoé, etc.) can refer to: *ζωή (''zōḗ''), the Ancient Greek word for "life" People * Zoe (name), including list of persons and fictional characters with the name Film and television * ''Zoe'' (film) * ZOE Broadcast ...
. Of partial Spanish origin: Rita Hayworth, Martin Sheen. Other outstanding figures are:
Anita Page Anita Page (born Anita Evelyn Pomares; August 4, 1910 – September 6, 2008) was an American film actress who reached stardom in the final years of the silent film era. She was referred to as "a blond, blue-eyed Latin" and "the girl with the m ...
(of Salvadoran origin), Fernando Lamas, Carlos Thompson, Alejandro Rey and Linda Cristal (of
Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
origin), Raquel Welch (of
Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
n origin), John Leguizamo (of
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
n origin), Oscar Isaac (of
Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
n origin), and
Pedro Pascal José Pedro Balmaceda Pascal (born 2 April 1975) is a Chilean and American actor. He began his career guest-starring on various television shows before rising to prominence for portraying Oberyn Martell on the fourth season of the HBO fantasy ...
(of Chilean origin). In stand-up comedy, Cristela Alonzo,
Anjelah Johnson Anjelah Nicole Johnson-Reyes (born May 14, 1982) is an American actress, comedian, and former NFL cheerleader. Johnson was a cast member on the series ''MADtv'' during its 13th season. Her characters included a Vietnamese nail salon employee na ...
, Paul Rodríguez, Greg Giraldo,
Cheech Marin :''The surname'' Marin ''is of Spanish language origin. In Spanish, it is spelled'' Marín'', with an acute accent on the'' í. Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born July 13, 1946) is an American actor, musician, comedian, and activist who gained ...
, George Lopez, Freddie Prinze, Jade Esteban Estrada, Carlos Mencia, John Mendoza, Gabriel Iglesias and others are prominent. Some of the Hispanic actors who achieved notable success in U.S. television include Desi Arnaz, Lynda Carter, Jimmy Smits, Charo, Jencarlos Canela, Christian Serratos, Carlos Pena Jr., Eva Longoria, Sofía Vergara, Ricardo Antonio Chavira, Jacob Vargas, Benjamin Bratt, Ricardo Montalbán, Hector Elizondo, Mario Lopez, America Ferrera, Karla Souza, Diego Boneta, Erik Estrada, Cote de Pablo, Freddie Prinze, Lauren Vélez,
Isabella Gomez Isabella Gomez (born February 9, 1998) is a Colombian-American actress, best known for starring in '' One Day at a Time''. Gomez has previously had minor roles in both '' Modern Family'' and '' Matador''. She was later cast in a starring role in ...
, Justina Machado, Tony Plana Stacey Dash, and Charlie Sheen. Kenny Ortega is an
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
-winning producer, director and choreographer who has choreographed many major television events such as
Super Bowl XXX Super Bowl XXX was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...
, the 72nd Academy Awards and Michael Jackson's memorial service. Hispanics are underrepresented in U.S. television, radio, and film. This is combatted by organizations such as the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA), founded in 1975; and National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC), founded in 1986. Together with numerous Hispanic civil rights organizations, the NHMC led a "brownout" of the national television networks in 1999, after discovering that there were no Hispanic on any of their new
prime time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
series that year. This resulted in the signing of historic diversity agreements with ABC, CBS,
Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelv ...
and NBC that have since increased the hiring of Hispanic talent and other staff in all of the networks. Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB) funds programs of educational and cultural significance to Hispanic Americans. These programs are distributed to various public television stations throughout the United States. The 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards was criticized by Hispanics; there were no major nominations for Hispanic performers, despite the
Academy of Television Arts & Sciences The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), also colloquially known as the Television Academy, is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the television industry in the United States. It is a 501(c)(6) non-prof ...
publicizing their improved diversity in 2020. While there was a record number of black nominees, there was only one individual Hispanic nomination. Hispanic representation groups said the greater diversity referred only to more African American nominees. When the '' Los Angeles Times'' reported the criticism using the term "black", it was itself criticized for erasing Afro-Hispanics, a discussion that then prompted more investigation into this under-represented minority ethnic group in Hollywood. John Leguizamo boycotted the Emmys because of its lack of Hispanic nominees.


Fashion

In the world of fashion, notable Hispanic designers include Oscar de la Renta, Carolina Herrera, Narciso Rodriguez,
Manuel Cuevas Manuel Arturo José Cuevas Martínez Sr. (born April 23, 1933 in Coalcomán Michoacán) is a Mexican fashion designer best known for the garments he created for prominent rock and roll and country music acts. Early life Manuel Arturo José Cueva ...
, Maria Cornejo, among others. Christy Turlington, Lais Ribeiro, Adriana Lima,
Gisele Bündchen Gisele Caroline Bündchen (, , born 20 July 1980) is a Brazilian fashion model. Since 2001, she has been one of the highest-paid models in the world. In 2007, Bündchen was the 16th-richest woman in the entertainment industry and earned th ...
and
Lea T Leandra Medeiros Cerezo, known professionally as Lea T (born 19 February 1981), is a Brazilian-born, Italian-raised transgender fashion model. She has been called the "muse" of Riccardo Tisci, chief creative officer of British luxury brand Burb ...
achieved international fame as models.


Artists

Notable Hispanic artists include
Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat (; December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist who rose to success during the 1980s as part of the Neo-expressionism movement. Basquiat first achieved fame as part of the graffiti duo SAMO, alongside Al ...
, Carmen Herrera, Gronk, Luis Jiménez,
Félix González-Torres Félix González-Torres (November 26, 1957 – January 9, 1996) was a Cuban-born American visual artist. González-Torres's openly gay sexual orientation was influential in his work as an artist. González-Torres was known for his minimal inst ...
, Ana Mendieta, Joe Shannon, Richard Serra, Abelardo Morell, Bill Melendez, María Magdalena Campos Pons, Sandra Ramos,
Myrna Báez Myrna Báez (born August 18, 1931 – September 24, 2018) was a Puerto Rican painter and printmaker, considered one of the most important visual artists in Puerto Rico. She has been instrumental in promoting art and art education in her country. ...
and Soraida Martinez.


Business and finance

The total number of Hispanic-owned businesses in 2002 was 1.6 million, having grown at triple the national rate for the preceding five years. Hispanic business leaders include Cuban immigrant
Roberto Goizueta Roberto Críspulo Goizueta Cantera (November 18, 1931 – October 18, 1997) was a Cuban-born American business executive who served as the chairman, president, and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Coca-Cola Company from August 1980 until his ...
, who rose to head of The Coca-Cola Company. Advertising Mexican-American magnate Arte Moreno became the first Hispanic to own a major league team in the United States when he purchased the Los Angeles Angels baseball club. Also a major sports team owner is Mexican-American
Linda G. Alvarado Linda Alvarado (born 1952) is President and Chief Executive Officer of Alvarado Construction, Inc., a large commercial and industrial general contracting/site management and design/build firm in Denver, Colorado. She is also President of Palo Alto ...
, president and CEO of Alvarado Construction, Inc. and co-owner of the
Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...
baseball team. There are several Hispanics on the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans. Alejandro Santo Domingo and his brother Andres Santo Domingo inherited their fathers stake in
SABMiller SABMiller plc was a South African multinational brewing and beverage company headquartered in Woking, England on the outskirts of London until 10 October 2016 when it was acquired by Anheuser-Busch InBev. Prior to that date, it was the world's ...
, now merged with
Anheuser-Busch InBev Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, commonly known as AB InBev, is an American-Belgian multinational drink and brewing company based in Leuven, Belgium. AB InBev has a global functional management office in New York City, and regional headquarters ...
. The brothers are ranked No. 132 and are each worth $4.8bn. Jorge Perez founded and runs The Related Group. He built his career developing and operating low-income multifamily apartments across Miami."Related's Jorge Pérez puts his stamp on the skyline".
The Real Deal. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
He is ranked No. 264 and is worth $3bn. The largest Hispanic-owned food company in the United States is Goya Foods, because of World War II hero
Joseph A. Unanue Joseph Andrew Unanue (March 14, 1925 – June 12, 2013) was a New York-born son of Spanish parents who was the president of Goya Foods, the largest Hispanic–owned food company in the United States. After a Catholic upbringing and education i ...
, the son of the company's founders. Angel Ramos was the founder of Telemundo, Puerto Rico's first television station and now the second largest Spanish-language television network in the United States, with an average viewership over one million in primetime. Samuel A. Ramirez Sr. made
Wall Street Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for t ...
history by becoming the first Hispanic to launch a successful investment banking firm, Ramirez & Co.
Nina Tassler Nina Tassler is an American television executive and producer. She was most recently the chairwoman of CBS Entertainment until 2015. Life and career Tassler was born in New York City to a Jewish father and a Puerto Rican mother who converted t ...
is president of CBS Entertainment since September 2004. She is the highest-profile Hispanic in network television and one of the few executives who has the power to approve the airing or renewal of series.


Government and politics

As of 2007, there were more than five thousand elected officeholders in the United States who were of Hispanic origin. In the House of Representatives, Hispanic representatives have included
Ladislas Lazaro Ladislas Lazaro (June 5, 1872 – March 30, 1927) was an American politician who served as a Democrat U.S. Representative from from 1913 to 1927. Biography Born near Ville Platte, Evangeline (then part of St. Landry) Parish, Louisiana, Lazaro ...
,
Antonio M. Fernández Antonio Manuel Fernández (January 17, 1902 – November 7, 1956) was a United States representative from New Mexico. He was born in Springer, New Mexico, where he attended the public schools, and Highlands University, Las Vegas, New Mexico ...
,
Henry B. Gonzalez Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
,
Kika de la Garza Eligio "Kika" de la Garza II (September 22, 1927March 13, 2017) was an American politician who served as the Democratic representative for the 15th congressional district of Texas from January 3, 1965, to January 3, 1997. Biography De la Garza ...
, Herman Badillo, Romualdo Pacheco and Manuel Lujan Jr., out of almost two dozen former representatives. Current representatives include Ileana Ros-Lehtinen,
Jose E. Serrano Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. *Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya * Jose the G ...
, Luis Gutiérrez, Nydia Velázquez,
Xavier Becerra Xavier Becerra ( ; ; born January 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 25th United States secretary of health and human services since March 2021. Becerra previously served as the attorney general of California from Jan ...
, Lucille Roybal-Allard,
Loretta Sanchez Loretta Lorna Sanchez (born January 7, 1960) is an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1997 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she was first elected in 1996, when she defeated long-serving Repu ...
, Rubén Hinojosa, Mario Díaz-Balart, Raul Grijalva,
Ben R. Lujan Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( he, ...
, Jaime Herrera Beutler, Raul Labrador and Alex Mooney—in all, they number thirty. Former senators are Octaviano Ambrosio Larrazolo,
Mel Martinez Mel, Mels or MEL may refer to: Biology * Mouse erythroleukemia cell line (MEL) * National Herbarium of Victoria, a herbarium with the Index Herbariorum code MEL People * Mel (given name), the abbreviated version of several given names (including ...
, Dennis Chavez, Joseph Montoya and
Ken Salazar Kenneth Lee Salazar (born March 2, 1955) is an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat who is the United States ambassador to Mexico. He previously served as the 50th United States Secretary of the Interior in the administration of President Ba ...
. As of January 2011, the U.S. Senate includes Hispanic members
Bob Menendez Robert Menendez (; born January 1, 1954) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from New Jersey, a seat he has held since 2006. Gale Biography In Context. A member of the Democratic Party, he was firs ...
, a Democrat and Republicans Ted Cruz and
Marco Rubio Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the senior United States senator from Florida, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he served as Speaker of the Florida Hous ...
, all Cuban Americans. Numerous Hispanics hold elective and appointed office in state and local government throughout the United States. Current Hispanic Governors include Republican Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and Republican New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez; upon taking office in 2011, Martinez became the first Hispanic woman governor in the history of the United States. Former Hispanic governors include Democrats Jerry Apodaca, Raul Hector Castro, and Bill Richardson, as well as Republicans Octaviano Ambrosio Larrazolo, Romualdo Pacheco and Bob Martinez. Since 1988, when
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
appointed Lauro Cavazos the Secretary of Education, the first Hispanic United States Cabinet member, Hispanic Americans have had an increasing presence in presidential administrations. Hispanics serving in subsequent cabinets include
Ken Salazar Kenneth Lee Salazar (born March 2, 1955) is an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat who is the United States ambassador to Mexico. He previously served as the 50th United States Secretary of the Interior in the administration of President Ba ...
, current Secretary of the Interior; Hilda Solis, current United States Secretary of Labor;
Alberto Gonzales Alberto R. Gonzales (born August 4, 1955) is an American lawyer who served as the 80th United States Attorney General, appointed in February 2005 by President George W. Bush, becoming the highest-ranking Hispanic American in executive governme ...
, former United States Attorney General; Carlos Gutierrez,
Secretary of Commerce The United States secretary of commerce (SecCom) is the head of the United States Department of Commerce. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to commerce. The secretary rep ...
; Federico Peña, former Secretary of Energy;
Henry Cisneros Henry Gabriel Cisneros (born June 11, 1947) is an American politician and businessman. He served as the mayor of San Antonio, Texas, from 1981 to 1989, the second Latino mayor of a major American city and the city's first since 1842 (when Juan ...
, former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; Manuel Lujan Jr., former Secretary of the Interior; and Bill Richardson, former Secretary of Energy and Ambassador to the United Nations.
Rosa Rios Rosa Gumataotao Rios (born July 17, 1965) is an American academic. She served as the 43rd Treasurer of the United StatesCarla Marinucci"Obama selects Bay Area Latina as his choice for U.S. Treasurer,"''San Francisco Chronicle'' (May 15, 2009). an ...
is the current
US Treasurer The treasurer of the United States is an officer in the United States Department of the Treasury who serves as custodian and trustee of the federal government's collateral assets and the supervisor of the department's currency and coinage produc ...
, including the latest three, were Hispanic women. In 2009, Sonia Sotomayor became the first
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
Associate Justice of Hispanic origin. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), founded in December 1976, and the Congressional Hispanic Conference (CHC), founded on March 19, 2003, are two organizations that promote policy of importance to Americans of Hispanic descent. They are divided into the two major American political parties: The Congressional Hispanic Caucus is composed entirely of
Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
representatives, whereas the Congressional Hispanic Conference is composed entirely of Republican representatives. Groups like the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute (USHLI) work to achieve the promises and principles of the United States by "promoting education, research, and leadership development, and empowering Hispanics and similarly disenfranchised groups by maximizing their civic awareness, engagement, and participation".


Literature and journalism


Writers and their works

* Julia Álvarez (''
How the García Girls Lost Their Accents ''How the García Girls Lost Their Accents'' is a 1991 novel written by Dominican-American poet, novelist, and essayist Julia Alvarez. Told in reverse chronological order and narrated from shifting perspectives, the story spans more than thirty ...
'') * Rudolfo Anaya (''
Bless Me, Ultima ''Bless Me, Ultima'' is a coming-of-age novel by Rudolfo Anaya centering on Antonio Márez y Luna and his mentorship under his '' curandera'' and protector, Ultima. It has become the most widely read and critically acclaimed novel in the Chicano ...
'' and ''Heart of Aztlan'') * Marie Arana ('' American Chica'', '' Bolívar: American Liberator'' and '' Silver, Sword, and Stone'' * Sandra Cisneros (''
The House on Mango Street ''The House on Mango Street'' is a 1984 novel by Mexican-American author Sandra Cisneros. Structured as a series of vignettes, it tells the story of Esperanza Cordero, a 12-year-old Chicana girl growing up in the Hispanic quarter of Chicago. Based ...
'' and '' Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories'') * Junot Díaz ('' The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao'') * Cecilia Domeyko (''Sacrifice on the Border'') * Ernest Fenollosa (art historian, ''Masters of Ukiyoe'') * Rigoberto González (''Butterfly Boy: Memories of a Chicano Mariposa'') * Oscar Hijuelos (''
The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love ''The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love'' is a 1989 novel by Oscar Hijuelos. It is about the lives of two Cuban brothers and musicians, Cesar and Nestor Castillo, who immigrate to the United States and settle in New York City in the early 1950s. T ...
'') * Jorge Majfud ('' Crisis'' and ''La frontera salvaje''). * Micol Ostow (''"Mind Your Manners, Dick and Jane"'', ''"Emily Goldberg Learns to Salsa"'') * Benito Pastoriza Iyodo (''A Matter of Men'' and ''September Elegies'') * Alberto Alvaro Rios (''Capirotada'', ''Elk Heads on the Wall'' and ''The Iguana Killer'') * Tomas Rivera (''...And the Earth did Not Devour Him'') * Richard Rodríguez (Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodriguez, ''Hunger of Memory'') * George Santayana (novelist and philosopher: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it") * Sergio Troncoso (''From This Wicked Patch of Dust'' and ''The Last Tortilla and Other Stories'') * Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez (''Haters (novel), Haters'') * Victor Villaseñor (''Rain of Gold'') * Oscar Zeta Acosta (''The Revolt of the Cockroach People'')


Journalists

* Cecilia Vega American journalist, currently serving as chief White House correspondent for ABC News. * Jorge Ramos (news anchor), Jorge Ramos has won eight Emmy Awards and the Maria Moors Cabot Award for excellence in journalism. In 2015, Ramos was one of five selected as ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine's World's Most Influential People. * José Díaz-Balart is currently the anchor for Noticias Telemundo, as well as anchor of NBC Nightly News on Saturdays. * Paola Ramos (journalist), Paola Ramos, correspondent for ''Vice (magazine), Vice'' and is a contributor to Telemundo and MSNBC. * Ana Cabrera currently works as a television news anchor for CNN in Manhattan. * Natalie Morales (journalist), Natalie Morales is the ''Today (U.S. TV program), Today Show'' West Coast anchor and appears on other programs including ''Dateline NBC'' and ''NBC Nightly News''. * María Elena Salinas CBS News contributor called the "Voice of Hispanic America" by ''The New York Times'' * Morgan Radford, reporter employed by NBC News and MSNBC, was a production assistant for ESPN. * Geraldo Rivera has won a Peabody Award and appears regularly on Fox News programs such as ''The Five (talk show), The Five''. * John Quiñones, co-anchor of the ABC News program, Primetime (U.S. TV program), ''Primetime'' and now hosts ''What Would You Do?'' * Rubén Salazar, reporter for the '' Los Angeles Times'' and news director for KMEX, which was a Spanish language station. * Maria Elvira Salazar, journalist and broadcast television anchor who worked for Telemundo, CNN en Español and Noticiero Univision. * Michele Ruiz, former Los Angeles news anchor for KNBC-TV. * Giselle Fernández, reporting and guest anchoring for ''CBS Early Show'', ''CBS Evening News'', ''NBC Today'', ''NBC Nightly News''; regular host for ''Access Hollywood''. * Elizabeth Pérez, television journalist for CNN en Español. Political strategists * Mercedes Schlapp, American lobbyist and columnist for Fox News, including ''U.S. News & World Report'' and ''The Washington Times''. * Geovanny Vicente, political strategist, international consultant and columnist who writes for CNN.


Military

Hispanics have participated in the military of the United States and in every major List of United States military history events, military conflict from the American Revolution onward. 11% to 13% military personnel now are Hispanics and they have been deployed in the Iraq War, the War in Afghanistan (2001–present), Afghanistan War, and U.S. military missions and bases elsewhere. Hispanics have not only distinguished themselves in the battlefields but also reached the high echelons of the military, serving their country in sensitive leadership positions on domestic and foreign posts. Up to now, 43 Hispanics have been awarded the nation's highest military distinction, the Medal of Honor (also known as the ''Congressional Medal of Honor''). The following is a list of some notable Hispanics in the military:


American Revolution

* Bernardo de Gálvez (1746–1786) – Spanish military leader and colonial administrator who aided the American Thirteen Colonies in their quest for independence and led Spanish forces against Kingdom of Great Britain, Britain in the Revolutionary War; since 2014, a posthumous honorary citizen of the United States * Lieutenant Jordi Farragut, Jorge Farragut Mesquida (1755–1817) – participated in the American Revolution as a lieutenant in the South Carolina Navy


American Civil War

* Admiral David Farragut – promoted to vice admiral on December 21, 1864, and to full admiral on July 25, 1866, after the war, thereby becoming the first person to be named full admiral in the Navy's history. *Rear Admiral Cipriano Andrade – Mexican Rear admiral, Navy rear admiral who fought for the Union. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. * Colonel Ambrosio José Gonzales – Cuban officer active during the bombardment of Fort Sumter; because of his actions, was appointed Colonel of artillery and assigned to duty as Chief of Artillery in the department of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. * Brigadier General Diego Archuleta (1814–1884) – member of the Mexican Army who fought against the United States in the Mexican–American War. During the American Civil War, he joined the Union Army (US Army) and became the first Hispanic to reach the military rank of brigadier general. He commanded The First New Mexico Volunteer Infantry in the Battle of Valverde. He was later appointed an Indian (Native Americans) Agent by Abraham Lincoln."Hispanics Firsts"; by: Nicolas Kanellos; pp. 210–211; Publisher: Visible Ink Press; * Colonel Carlos de la Mesa – grandfather of Major General (United States), Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen Sr. commanding general of the 1st Infantry Division (United States), First Infantry Division in North Africa and Sicily, and later the commander of the 104th Infantry Division (United States), 104th Infantry Division during World War II. Colonel Carlos de la Mesa was a Spanish people, Spanish national who fought at Battle of Gettysburg, Gettysburg for the Union Army in the Spanish Company of the "Garibaldi Guard" of the 39th New York State Volunteers. * Colonel Federico Fernández Cavada – commanded the 114th Pennsylvania Volunteer infantry regiment when it took the field in the Peach Orchard at Gettysburg"The Civil War, 1840s-1890s"; by Roger E. Hernandez, Roger E. Hernndez; ; * Colonel Miguel E. Pino – commanded the 2nd Regiment of New Mexico Volunteers, which fought at the Battle of Valverde in February and the Battle of Glorieta Pass and helped defeat the attempted invasion of New Mexico by the Confederate Army * Colonel Santos Benavides – commanded his own regiment, the "Benavides Regiment"; highest ranking Mexican-American in the Confederate Army * Major Salvador Vallejo – officer in one of the California units that served with the Union Army in the West * Captain Adolfo Fernández Cavada – served in the 114th Pennsylvania Volunteers at Gettysburg with his brother, Colonel Federico Fernandez Cavada; served with distinction in the Army of the Potomac from Fredericksburg to Gettysburg; "special aide-de-camp" to General Andrew A. Humphreys *Captain Rafael Chacón – Mexican American leader of the Union New Mexico Volunteers. * Captain Roman Anthony Baca – member of the Union forces in the New Mexico Volunteers; spy for the Union Army in Texas * Lieutenant Augusto Rodríguez (soldier), Augusto Rodriguez – Puerto Rican people, Puerto Rican native; officer in the 15th Connecticut Infantry Regiment, 15th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, of the Union Army; served in the defenses of Washington, D.C., and led his men in the Battles of Battle of Fredericksburg, Fredericksburg and Battle of Wyse Fork, Wyse Fork"The Puerto Rican Diaspora: historical perspectives"; By Carmen Teresa Whalen, Víctor Vázquez-Hernandez; page 176; Publisher: Temple University Press; ; * Lola Sánchez (Confederate spy), Lola Sánchez – Cuban-born woman who became a Confederate spy; helped the Confederates obtain a victory against the Union forces in the "Battle of Horse Landing" * Loreta Janeta Velázquez, also known as "Lieutenant Harry Buford" – Cuban people, Cuban woman who donned Confederate garb and served as a Confederate officer and spy during the American Civil War


World War I

* Major General Luis R. Esteves, United States Army – in 1915, became the first Hispanic to graduate from the United States Military Academy ("West Point"); organized the Puerto Rican National Guard * Private Marcelino Serna – undocumented Mexican people, Mexican immigrant who joined the United States Army and became the most decorated soldier from Texas in World War I; first Hispanic to be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (United States), Distinguished Service Cross


World War II

* Lieutenant General Pedro del Valle – first Hispanic to reach the rank of Lieutenant general (United States), lieutenant general; played an instrumental role in the seizure of Guadalcanal and Okinawa as commanding general of the 1st Marine Division (United States), U.S. 1st Marine Division during World War II * Lieutenant General Elwood Richard Quesada, Elwood R. Quesada (1904–1993) – commanding general of the 9th Fighter Command, where he established advanced headquarters on the Normandy beachhead on Normandy Landings, D-Day plus one, and directed his planes in Military aviation, aerial cover and Close air support, air support for the Allied invasion of the European continent during World War II. He was the foremost proponent of "the inherent flexibility of air power", a principle he helped prove during the war. * Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen Sr. (1888–1969) – commanding general of the 1st Infantry Division (United States), 1st Infantry Division in North Africa and Sicily during World War II; commander of the 104th Infantry Division (United States), 104th Infantry Division * Colonel Virgil R. Miller – regimental commander of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team (United States), 442d Regimental Combat Team, a unit composed of "Nisei" (second generation Americans of Japanese descent), during World War II; led the 442nd in its rescue of the Lost Texas Battalion of the 36th Infantry Division (United States), 36th Infantry Division, in the forests of the Vosges Mountains in northeastern France * Captain Marion Frederic Ramírez de Arellano (1913–1980) – served in World War II; first Hispanic submarine commander * First Lieutenant Oscar Francis Perdomo – of the 464th Fighter Squadron, 507th Fighter Group; the last "Ace in a Day" for the United States in World War II * CWO2 Joseph B. Aviles Sr. – member of the United States Coast Guard; first Hispanic American to be promoted to chief petty officer; received a wartime promotion to chief warrant officer (November 27, 1944), thus becoming the first Hispanic American to reach that level as well * Sergeant First Class Agustín Ramos Calero – most decorated Hispanic soldier in the European Theatre of World War II * PFC Guy Gabaldon, United States Marine Corps – captured over a thousand prisoners during the World War II Battle of Saipan * Tech4 Carmen Contreras-Bozak – first Latinas and World War II, Hispanic woman to serve in the United States Women's Army Corps, where she served as an interpreter and in numerous administrative positions


Korean War

* Major General Salvador E. Felices, United States Air Force – flew in 19 combat missions over North Korea during the Korean War in 1953. In 1957, he participated in "Operation Power Flite", a historic project that was given to the 15th Expeditionary Mobility Task Force, Fifteenth Air Force by the Strategic Air Command headquarters. Operation Power Flite was the first around the world non-stop flight by an Jet aircraft, all-jet aircraft. * First Lieutenant Baldomero Lopez – the only Hispanic graduate of the United States Naval Academy ("Annapolis") to be awarded the Medal of Honor * Sergeant First Class Modesto Cartagena – member of the 65th Infantry Regiment, an all- Puerto Rican regiment also known as "The Borinqueneers", during World War II and the Korean War; most decorated Puerto Rican soldier in history


Cuban Missile Crisis

* Admiral Horacio Rivero, Jr. – second Hispanic four-star admiral; commander of the American fleet sent by President John F. Kennedy to set up a quarantine (blockade) of the Soviet Union, Soviet ships during the Cuban Missile Crisis


Vietnam War

* Sergeant First Class Jorge Otero Barreto a.k.a. "The Puerto Rican John Rambo, Rambo"– the most decorated Hispanic American soldier in the Vietnam War


After Vietnam

* Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez – top commander of the Coalition forces during the first year of the occupation of Iraq, 2003–2004, during the Iraq War * Lieutenant General Edward D. Baca – in 1994, became the first Hispanic Chief of the National Guard Bureau * Vice Admiral Antonia Novello, M.D., United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, Public Health Service Commissioned Corps – in 1990, became the first Hispanic (and first female) U.S. Surgeon General * Vice Admiral Richard Carmona, M.D., United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, Public Health Service Commissioned Corps – served as the 17th Surgeon General of the United States, under President George W. Bush * Brigadier General Joseph V. Medina, USMC – made history by becoming the first Marine Corps officer to take command of a Flotilla, naval flotilla * Rear Admiral Ronald J. Rábago – first person of Hispanic descent to be promoted to rear admiral (lower half) in the United States Coast Guard * Captain Linda Garcia Cubero, United States Air Force – in 1980, became the first Hispanic woman graduate of the United States Air Force * Major General Erneido Oliva – deputy commanding general of the D.C. National Guard * Brigadier General Carmelita Vigil-Schimmenti, United States Air Force – in 1985 became the first Hispanic female to attain the rank of brigadier general in the Air Force * Brigadier General Angela Salinas – on August 2, 2006, became the first Hispanic female to obtain a general rank in the Marines * Chief Master Sergeant Ramón Colón-López – pararescueman; in 2007, was the only Hispanic among the first six airmen to be awarded the newly created Air Force Combat Action Medal * Specialist Hilda Clayton (1991–2013) – combat photographer with 55th Signal Company who captured the explosion that killed her and four Afghan soldiers.


Medal of Honor

The following 43 Hispanics were awarded the Medal of Honor: Philip Bazaar, Joseph H. De Castro, John Ortega, France Silva, David B. Barkley, Lucian Adams, Rudolph B. Davila, Marcario Garcia, Harold Gonsalves, David M. Gonzales, Silvestre S. Herrera, Jose M. Lopez, Joe P. Martinez, Manuel Perez Jr., Cleto L. Rodriguez, Alejandro R. Ruiz, Jose F. Valdez, Ysmael R. Villegas, Fernando Luis García, Edward Gomez, Ambrosio Guillen, Rodolfo P. Hernandez, Baldomero Lopez, Benito Martinez (soldier), Benito Martinez, Eugene Arnold Obregon, Joseph C. Rodriguez, John P. Baca, Roy P. Benavidez, Emilio A. De La Garza, Ralph E. Dias, Daniel D. Fernández, Daniel Fernandez, Alfredo Cantu Gonzalez, Alfredo Cantu "Freddy" Gonzalez, Jose Francisco Jimenez, Miguel Keith, Carlos Lozada (Medal of Honor), Carlos James Lozada, Alfred V. Rascon, Louis R. Rocco, Euripides Rubio, Hector Santiago-Colon, Elmelindo Rodrigues Smith, Jay R. Vargas, Humbert Roque Versace and Maximo Yabes.


National intelligence

* In the spy arena, Jose Rodriguez (intelligence), José Rodríguez, a native of Puerto Rico, was the deputy director of operations and subsequently Director of the National Clandestine Service (D/NCS), two senior positions in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), between 2004 and 2007. * Lieutenant Colonel Mercedes O. Cubria (1903–1980), a.k.a. ''La Tía'' (The Aunt), was the first Cuban-born female officer in the United States Army. She served in the Women's Army Corps during World War II and in the United States Army during the Korean War, and was recalled into service during the Cuban Missile Crisis. In 1988, she was posthumously inducted into the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame.


Science and technology

Among Hispanic Americans who have excelled in science are Luis Walter Álvarez, Nobel Prize–winning physicist of Spanish descent, and his son Walter Alvarez, a geologist. They first proposed that an asteroid impact on the Yucatán Peninsula caused the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, extinction of the dinosaurs. Mario J. Molina won the Nobel Prize in chemistry and currently works in the chemistry department at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Victor Manuel Blanco is an astronomer who in 1959 discovered "Blanco 1", a galactic cluster. F. J. Duarte is a laser physicist and author; he received the ''Engineering Excellence Award'' from the prestigious Optical Society of America for the invention of the N-Slit interferometer, N-slit laser interferometer. Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa is the director of the Pituitary Surgery Program at Johns Hopkins Hospital and the director of the Brain Tumor Stem Cell Laboratory at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Physicist Albert Baez made important contributions to the early development of X-ray microscopes and later X-ray telescopes. His nephew John Carlos Baez is also a noted mathematical physicist. Francisco J. Ayala is a biologist and philosopher, former president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and has been awarded the National Medal of Science and the Templeton Prize. Peruvian-American biophysicist Carlos Bustamante (biophysicist), Carlos Bustamante has been named a Searle Scholar and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellow. Luis von Ahn is one of the pioneers of crowdsourcing and the founder of the companies reCAPTCHA and Duolingo. Colombian-American Ana Maria Rey received a MacArthur Fellowship for her work in atomic physics in 2013. Dr. Fernando E. Rodríguez Vargas discovered the bacteria that cause dental cavity. Dr. Gualberto Ruaño is a biotechnology pioneer in the field of personalized medicine and the inventor of molecular diagnostic systems, Coupled Amplification and Sequencing (CAS) System, used worldwide for the management of viral diseases. Fermín Tangüis was an agriculturist and scientist who developed the Tangüis Cotton in Peru and saved that nation's cotton industry. Severo Ochoa, born in Spain, was a co-winner of the 1959 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Dr. Sarah Stewart (cancer researcher), Sarah Stewart, a Mexican-American Microbiologist, is credited with the discovery of the Polyomavirus and successfully demonstrating that cancer causing viruses could be transmitted from animal to animal. Mexican-American psychiatrist Dr. Nora Volkow, whose brain imaging studies helped characterize the mechanisms of drug addiction, is the current director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Dr. Helen Rodríguez Trías, an early advocate for women's reproductive rights, helped drive and draft U.S. federal sterilization guidelines in 1979. She was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal by President Bill Clinton, and was the first Hispanic president of the American Public Health Association. Some Hispanics have made their names in astronautics, including several NASA astronauts: Franklin Chang-Diaz, the first Hispanic NASA astronaut, is co-recordholder for the most flights in outer space, and is the leading researcher on the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket, plasma engine for rockets; France A. Córdova, former NASA chief scientist; Juan R. Cruz, NASA aerospace engineer; Lieutenant Carlos I. Noriega, NASA mission specialist and computer scientist; Dr. Orlando Figueroa, mechanical engineer and director of Mars exploration in NASA; Amri Hernández-Pellerano, engineer who designs, builds and tests the electronics that will regulate the solar array power in order to charge the spacecraft battery and distribute power to the different loads or users inside various spacecraft at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. Olga D. González-Sanabria won an R&D 100 Award for her role in the development of the "Long Cycle-Life Nickel-Hydrogen Batteries" which help enable the International Space Station power system. Mercedes Reaves, research engineer and scientist who is responsible for the design of a viable full-scale solar sail and the development and testing of a scale model solar sail at NASA Langley Research Center. Dr. Pedro Rodriguez (NASA), Pedro Rodríguez, inventor and mechanical engineer who is the director of a test laboratory at NASA and of a portable, battery-operated lift seat for people suffering from knee arthritis. Dr. Felix Soto Toro, electrical engineer and astronaut applicant who developed the Advanced Payload Transfer Measurement System (ASPTMS) (Electronic 3D measuring system); Ellen Ochoa, a pioneer of spacecraft technology and astronaut; Joseph M. Acaba, Joseph Acaba, Fernando Caldeiro, Sidney M. Gutierrez, Sidney Gutierrez, José M. Hernández, Michael López-Alegría, John D. Olivas, John Olivas and George D. Zamka, George Zamka, who are current or former astronauts.


Sports


Football

There have been far fewer American football, football and basketball players, let alone star players, but Tom Flores was the first Hispanic head coach and the first Hispanic quarterback in American professional football, and won Super Bowls as a player, as assistant coach and as head coach for the Oakland Raiders. Anthony Múñoz is enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, ranked No. 17 on Sporting News's 1999 list of the 100 greatest football players, and was the highest-ranked offensive lineman. Jim Plunkett won the Heisman Trophy and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, and Joe Kapp is inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame. Steve Van Buren, Martin Gramatica, Victor Cruz (American football), Victor Cruz, Tony Gonzalez, Ted Hendricks, Marc Bulger, Tony Romo and Mark Sanchez can also be cited among successful Hispanics in the National Football League (NFL).


Baseball

Hispanics have played in the Major Leagues since the very beginning of organized baseball, with Cuban player Steve Bellán, Esteban Bellán being the first (1873). The large number of Hispanic American stars in Major League Baseball (MLB) includes players like Ted Williams (considered by many to be the greatest hitter of all time), Sammy Sosa, Alex Rodriguez, Alex Rios, Miguel Cabrera, Lefty Gómez, Dolf Luque, Adolfo Luque, Iván Rodríguez, Carlos González (baseball), Carlos González, Roberto Clemente, Adrián González, José Fernández (pitcher), Jose Fernandez, David Ortiz, Juan Marichal, Fernando Valenzuela, Nomar Garciaparra, Albert Pujols, Omar Vizquel, managers Mike González (catcher), Miguel Angel Gonzalez (the first Hispanic Major League manager), Al López, Ozzie Guillén and Felipe Alou, and General Manager Omar Minaya. Hispanics in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, MLB Hall of Fame include Roberto Alomar, Luis Aparicio, Rod Carew, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal, Pedro Martínez, Tony Pérez, Iván Rodríguez, Ted Williams, Reggie Jackson, Mariano Rivera, Edgar Martínez, Edgar Martinez and Roberto Clemente. Afro-Latin Americans, Afro-Hispanic players Martín Dihigo, Martin Dihigo, José Méndez, Jose Mendez and Cristóbal Torriente are Hispanic Hall of Famers who played in the Negro league baseball, Negro leagues.


Basketball

Trevor Ariza, Mark Aguirre, Carmelo Anthony, Manu Ginóbili, Carlos Arroyo, Gilbert Arenas, Rolando Blackman, Pau Gasol, José Calderón (basketball), Jose Calderon, José Juan Barea and Charlie Villanueva can be cited in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Dick Versace made history when he became the first person of Hispanic heritage to coach an NBA team. Rebecca Lobo was a major star and champion of collegiate (National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)) and Olympic Games, Olympic basketball and played professionally in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Diana Taurasi became just the seventh player ever to win an NCAA title, a WNBA title and as well an Olympic gold medal. Orlando Antigua became in 1995 the first Hispanic and the first non-black in 52 years to play for the Harlem Globetrotters.


Tennis

Tennis players includes legend Pancho Gonzales and Olympic tennis champions and professional players Mary Joe Fernández and Gigi Fernández and 2016 Puerto Rican Gold Medalist Monica Puig.


Soccer

Hispanics are present in all major American sports and leagues, but have particularly influenced the growth in popularity of soccer in the United States. Soccer is the most popular sport across the Spanish-speaking world, and Hispanics brought the heritage of soccer playing to the United States. Major League Soccer teams such as Chivas USA, LA Galaxy and the Houston Dynamo, for example, have a fanbase composed primarily of Mexican Americans. Association football players in the Major League Soccer (MLS) includes several like Tab Ramos, Claudio Reyna, Omar Gonzalez, Marcelo Balboa and Carlos Bocanegra.


Swimming

Swimmers Ryan Lochte (the second-most decorated swimmer in Olympic history measured by total number of medals) and Dara Torres (one of three women with the most Olympic women's swimming medals), both of Cuban ancestry, have won multiple medals at various Olympic Games over the years. Torres is also the first American swimmer to appear in five Olympic Games. Maya DiRado, of Argentine ancestry, won four medals at the 2016 games, including two gold medals.


Other sports

Boxing's first Hispanic American world champion was Solly Smith. Some other champions include Oscar De La Hoya, Miguel Cotto, Bobby Chacon, Brandon Ríos, Michael Carbajal, John Ruiz, Andy Ruiz Jr. and Mikey Garcia. Ricco Rodriguez, Tito Ortiz, Diego Sanchez, Nick Diaz, Nate Diaz, Dominick Cruz, Frank Shamrock, Gilbert Melendez, Roger Huerta, Carlos Condit, Tony Ferguson, Jorge Masvidal, Kelvin Gastelum, Henry Cejudo and UFC Heavy Weight Champion Cain Velasquez have been competitors in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) of mixed martial arts. In 1991, Bill Guerin whose mother is Nicaraguan became the first Hispanic player in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was also selected to four National Hockey League All-Star Game, NHL All-Star Games. In 1999, Scott Gomez won the Calder Memorial Trophy, NHL Rookie of the Year Award. Figure skater Rudy Galindo; golfers Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez, Chi Chi Rodríguez, Nancy López and Lee Trevino; softball player Lisa Fernández; and Paul Rodriguez (skateboarder), Paul Rodríguez Jr., X Games professional skateboarder, are all Hispanic Americans who have distinguished themselves in their sports. In gymnastics, Laurie Hernandez, who is of Puerto Rican ancestry, was a gold medalist at the 2016 Games. In sports entertainment we find the Professional wrestling, professional wrestlers Hulk Hogan, Alberto Del Rio, Rey Mysterio, Jr., Rey Mysterio, Eddie Guerrero, Seth Rollins, Tyler Black and Melina Perez, Melina Pérez and executive Vickie Guerrero.


Hispanophobia

In countries where the majority of the population is descended from immigrants, such as the United States, opposition to immigration sometimes takes the form of Nativism (politics), nativism, racism and xenophobia. Throughout History of the United States, US history, Hispanophobia has existed to varying degrees, and it was largely based on
ethnicity 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, ...
, Race (human categorization), race (see Racism in the United States), culture, Anti-Catholicism (see Anti-Catholicism in the United States), economic and social conditions in Hispanic America, and opposition to the use of the Spanish language. In 2006, ''Time'' magazine reported that the number of hate groups in the United States increased by 33 percent since 2000, primarily as a result of anti-illegal immigrant and anti-Mexican sentiment. According to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) statistics, the number of anti-Hispanic hate crimes increased by 35 percent since 2003 (albeit from a low level). In California, the state with the largest Hispanic population, the number of hate crimes which were committed against Hispanics almost doubled. In 2009, the FBI reported that 4,622 of the 6,604 hate crimes which were recorded in the United States were anti-Hispanic, comprising 70.3% of all recorded hate crimes, the highest percentage of all of the hate crimes which were recorded in 2009. This percentage is contrasted by the fact that 34.6% of all of the hate crimes which were recorded in 2009 were anti-black, 17.9% of them were Homophobia, anti-homosexual, 14.1% of them were Antisemitism, anti-Jewish, and 8.3% of them were anti-white.


See also

Places of settlement in United States: * List of U.S. communities with Hispanic- or Latino-majority in the 2010 census * List of U.S. cities with large Hispanic and Latino populations * List of U.S. cities by Spanish-speaking population * Hispanics and Latinos in New Jersey * Hispanics and Latinos in Massachusetts * Hispanics and Latinos in Washington, D.C. * Hispanics and Latinos in California * Hispanics and Latinos in Arizona * Hispanics and Latinos in New Mexico * Hispanics and Latinos in Texas * Hispanics and Latinos in Nevada * Hispanics and Latinos in Florida * Hispanics and Latinos in New York Diaspora: * Hispanics ** Hispanic and Latin American Australians ** Latin American Canadians, Hispanic and Latin American Canadians ** Latin American migration to the United Kingdom, Latin Americans in the United Kingdom * Hispanidad * Latin American diaspora, Latino diaspora * Latin American Asian * Migration from Latin America to Europe, Latin Americans in Europe Individuals: * List of Hispanic and Latino Americans ** Hispanics and Latinos in the American Civil War ** Hispanic Americans in World War II, Hispanic and Latino Americans in World War II ** Hispanics and Latinos in the United States Air Force ** Hispanics and Latinos in the United States Coast Guard ** Hispanics and Latinos in the United States Marine Corps ** Hispanics and Latinos in the United States Navy *** Hispanic and Latino Admirals in the United States Navy *** Hispanics and Latinos in the United States Naval Academy Other Hispanic and Latino Americans topics: * Latin America–United States relations * National Alliance for Hispanic Health * Portugal–United States relations * Spain–United States relations * White Hispanic and Latino Americans, White Hispanic Americans * List of U.S. place names of Spanish origin * Latino National Survey, 2006 General: * Demographics of the United States **
Hispanos Hispanos (from es, adj. prefix Hispano- relating to Spain, from la, Hispānus) are Hispanic residents of the United States who are culturally descended from the original Spanish-speaking settlers in the areas which were once part of New Spain ...
** Immigration to the United States ** History of immigration to the United States


Notes


References


Further reading


Surveys and historiography

* Bean, Frank D., and Marta Tienda. ''The Hispanic Population of the United States'' (1987), statistical analysis of demography and social structure * Miguel A. De La Torre. ''Encyclopedia on Hispanic American Religious Culture'' (2 vol. ABC-CLIO Publishers, 2009). * De Leon, Arnoldo, and Richard Griswold Del Castillo. ''North to Aztlan: A History of Mexican Americans in the United States'' (2006) * Garcia, Maria Cristina. "Hispanics in the United States". ''Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture'', edited by Jay Kinsbruner and Erick D. Langer, (2nd ed., vol. 3, Charles Scribner's Sons, 2008), pp. 696–728
online
* Garcia, Richard A. "Changing Chicano Historiography", ''Reviews in American History'' 34.4 (2006) 521-52
online
* Gomez-Quiñones, Juan. ''Mexican American Labor, 1790–1990''. (1994). * Gutiérrez, David G. ed. ''The Columbia History of Latinos in the United States Since 1960'' (2004) 512p
excerpt and text search
* Gutiérrez, David G. "Migration, Emergent Ethnicity, and the 'Third Space'": The Shifting Politics of Nationalism in Greater Mexico" ''Journal of American History'' 1999 86(2): 481–517
in JSTOR
covers 1800 to the 1980s * Leonard, David J. ''Latino History and Culture: An Encyclopedia'' (Sharpe Reference 2009) * Oboler, Suzanne, and Deena J. González, eds. ''The Oxford Encyclopedia Of Latinos & Latinas In The United States'' (4 vol. 2006
excerpt and text search
* Rochín, Refugio I., and Denis N. Valdés, eds. ''Voices of a New Chicana/o History''. (2000). 307 pp. * Ruiz, Vicki L. "Nuestra América: Latino History as United States History", ''Journal of American History'', 93 (2006), 655–72
in JSTOR
* Ruiz, Vicki L. ''From Out of the Shadows: Mexican Women in Twentieth-Century America'' (1998)


Pre 1965

* Bogardus, Emory S. ''The Mexican in the United States'' (1934), sociological * Gamio, Manuel. ''The Life Story of the Mexican Immigrant'' (1931) * Gamio, Manuel. ''Mexican Immigration to the United States'' (1939) * García, Mario T. ''Mexican Americans: Leadership, Ideology and Identity, 1930–1960'' (1989) * García, Mario T. ''Desert Immigrants. The Mexicans of El Paso, 1880–1920'' (1982) 348 pp
excerpt and text search
* Gomez-Quinones, Juan. ''Roots of Chicano Politics, 1600–1940'' (1994) * Grebler, Leo, Joan Moore, and Ralph Guzmán. ''The Mexican American People: The Nation's Second Largest Minority'' (1970), emphasis on census data and statistics * Rivas-Rodríguez, Maggie ed. ''Mexican Americans and World War II'' (2005) * Sanchez, George J. ''Becoming Mexican American: Ethnicity, Culture, and Identity in Chicano Los Angeles, 1900–1945'' (1995
excerpt and text search


Culture and politics, post 1965

* Abrajano, Marisa A., and R. Michael Alvarez, eds. ''New Faces, New Voices: The Hispanic Electorate in America'' (Princeton University Press; 2010) 219 pages. Documents the generational and other diversity of the Hispanic electorate and challenges myths about voter behavior. * Aranda, José, Jr. ''When We Arrive: A New Literary History of Mexican America''. U. of Arizona Press, 2003. 256 pp. * Arreola, Daniel D., ed. ''Hispanic Spaces, Latino Places: Community and Cultural Diversity in Contemporary America''. 2004. 334 pp. * Badillo, David A. ''Latinos and the New Immigrant Church''. 2006. 275 pp
excerpt and text search
* Berg, Charles Ramírez. ''Latino Images in Film: Stereotypes, Subversion, and Resistance'', 2002. 314 pp. * Branton, Regina. "Latino Attitudes toward Various Areas of Public Policy: The Importance of Acculturation", ''Political Research Quarterly'', Vol. 60, No. 2, 293–303 (2007
Abstract
* Cepeda, Raquel. ''Bird of Paradise: How I Became Latina'' Atria Books. 2013. . A personal exploration of Dominican American identity via family interviews, travel and genetic genealogy
Synopsis and Excerpt
* DeGenova, Nicholas and Ramos-Zayas, Ana Y. ''Latino Crossings: Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, and the Politics of Race and Citizenship''. 2003. 257 pp. * Dolan, Jay P. and Gilberto M. Hinojosa; ''Mexican Americans and the Catholic Church, 1900–1965'' (1994) * Fregoso, Rosa Linda. ''The Bronze Screen: Chicana and Chicano Film Culture''. (1993
excerpt and text search
* García, Mario T. ''Mexican Americans: Leadership, Ideology and Identity, 1930–1960'' (1989) * García, María Cristina. ''Seeking Refuge: Central American Migration to Mexico, The United States, and Canada''. (2006) 290pp * Gomez-Quinones, Juan. ''Chicano Politics: Reality and Promise, 1940–1990'' (1990) * Gutiérrez, David G. ''Walls and Mirrors: Mexican Americans, Mexican Immigrants, and the Politics of Ethnicity in the Southwest, 1910–1986'' 1995
excerpt and text search
* Hammerback, John C., Richard J. Jensen, and Jose Angel Gutierrez. ''A War of Words: Chicano Protest in the 1960s and 1970s'' 1985. * Herrera-Sobek, Maria. ''Celebrating Latino Folklore: An Encyclopedia of Cultural Traditions'' (3 vol., 2012
excerpt and text search
* Kanellos, Nicolás, ed. ''The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Latino Literature'' (3 vol. 2008
excerpt and text search
* Kenski, Kate and Tisinger, Russell. "Hispanic Voters in the 2000 and 2004 Presidential General Elections". ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 2006 36(2): 189–202. * López-Calvo, Ignacio. ''Latino Los Angeles in Film and Fiction: The Cultural Production of Social Anxiety''. University of Arizona Press, 2011. * Martinez, Juan Francisco. ''Sea La Luz: The Making of Mexican Protestantism in the American Southwest, 1829–1900'' (2006) * Matovina, Timothy. ''Guadalupe and Her Faithful: Latino Catholics in San Antonio, from Colonial Origins to the Present''. 2005. 232 pp
excerpt and text search
* Meier, Matt S., and Margo Gutierrez, ed. ''Encyclopedia of the Mexican American Civil Rights Movement'' (2000
excerpt and text search
* Nuno, S. A. "Latino Mobilization and Vote Choice in the 2000 Presidential Election" ''American Politics Research'', (2007); 35(2): 273–293
Abstract
* Saldívar-Hull, Sonia. ''Feminism on the Border: Chicana Gender Politics and Literature'' 2000
excerpt and text search
* Wegner, Kyle David, "Children of Aztlán: Mexican American Popular Culture and the Post-Chicano Aesthetic" (PhD dissertation State University of New York, Buffalo, 2006). Order No. DA3213898.


Women

* Elizabeth Martínez, Martinez, Elizabeth. ''500 Years of Chicana Women's History/500 anos de la mujer Chicana'', Rutgers University Press (Bilingual Edition) 2008.


Regional and local

* Overmyer-Velazquez, Mark. ''Latino America: A State-by-State Encyclopedia'' (2 vol. 2008
excerpt and text search


California



** * Bedolla, Lisa García. ''Fluid Borders: Latino Power, Identity, and Politics in Los Angeles''. 2005. 279 pp. * Burt, Kenneth C. ''The Search for a Civic Voice: California Latino Politics'' (2007
excerpt and text search
* Camarillo, Albert. ''Chicanos in a Changing Society: From Mexican Pueblos to American Barrios in Santa Barbara and Southern California, 1848–1930'' (1979) * Camarillo, Albert M., "Cities of Color: The New Racial Frontier in California's Minority-Majority Cities", ''Pacific Historical Review'', 76 (February 2007), 1–28; looks at cities of Compton, East Palo Alto, and Seaside * Daniel, Cletus E. ''Bitter Harvest: A History of California Farmworkers, 1870–1941'' 1981. * García, Matt. ''A World of Its Own: Race, Labor, and Citrus in the Making of Greater Los Angeles, 1900–1970'' (2001), * Hayes-Bautista, David E. ''La Nueva California: Latinos in the Golden State''. U. of California Press, 2004. 263 pp
excerpt and text search
* Hughes, Charles. "The Decline of the Californios: The Case of San Diego, 1846–1856" ''The Journal of San Diego History'' Summer 1975, Volume 21, Number 3 online a

* McWilliams, Carey. ''North from Mexico''. (1949), farm workers in California * Pitt, Leonard. ''The Decline of the Californios: A Social History of the Spanish speaking Californians, 1846–1890'' () * Sánchez; George J. ''Becoming Mexican American: Ethnicity, Culture, and Identity in Chicano Los Angeles, 1900–1945'' (1993
excerpt and text search
* Valle, Victor M. and Torres, Rodolfo D. ''Latino Metropolis''. 2000. 249 pp. on Los Angeles


Texas and Southwest

* Alonzo, Armando C. ''Tejano Legacy: Rancheros and Settlers in South Texas, 1734–1900'' (1998)

*

** [https://web.archive.org/web/20140415073401/http://www.1st-hand-history.org/Hhb/16/album1.html v 16 ''History of the North Mexican States and Texas, Volume 2: 1801 - 1889''] *
Vol. 17 ''History of Arizona and New Mexico (1530-1888)'' (1889)
* Blackwelder, Julia Kirk. ''Women of the Depression: Caste and Culture in San Antonio'' 1984
excerpt and text search
* Buitron Jr., Richard A. ''The Quest for Tejano Identity in San Antonio, Texas, 1913–2000'' (2004
excerpt and text search
* Chávez, John R. ''The Lost Land: The Chicano Image of the Southwest'' (Albuquerque, 1984) * Chávez-García, Miroslava. ''Negotiating Conquest: Gender and Power in California, 1770s to 1880s'' (2004). * De León, Arnoldo. ''They Called Them Greasers: Anglo Attitudes toward Mexicans in Texas, 1821–1900'' (Austin, 1983) * De León, Arnoldo. ''Mexican Americans in Texas: A Brief History'', 2nd ed. (1999) * Deutsch, Sarah ''No Separate Refuge: Culture, Class, and Gender on the Anglo-Hispanic Frontier in the American Southwest, 1880–1940'' 1987 * Dysart, Jane. "Mexican Women in San Antonio, 1830–1860: The Assimilation Process" ''Western Historical Quarterly'' 7 (October 1976): 365–375
in JSTOR
* Echeverría, Darius V., "Aztlán Arizona: Abuses, Awareness, Animosity, and Activism amid Mexican-Americans, 1968–1978" PhD dissertation (Temple University, 2006). Order No. DA3211867. * Fregoso; Rosa Linda. ''Mexicana Encounters: The Making of Social Identities on the Borderlands'' (2003) * Garcia, Ignacio M. ''Viva Kennedy: Mexican Americans in Search of Camelot'', Texas A&M University Press, 2000. 227p
and online search from Amazon.com
* García, Richard A. ''Rise of the Mexican American Middle Class: San Antonio, 1929–1941'' 1991 * Getz; Lynne Marie. ''Schools of Their Own: The Education of Hispanos in New Mexico, 1850–1940'' (1997) * Gómez-Quiñones, Juan. ''Roots of Chicano Politics, 1600–1940'' (1994) * Gonzales-Berry, Erlinda, David R. Maciel, editors, ''The Contested Homeland: A Chicano History of New Mexico'', 314 pages (2000), * González; Nancie L. ''The Spanish-Americans of New Mexico: A Heritage of Pride'' (1969) * Guglielmo, Thomas A. "Fighting for Caucasian Rights: Mexicans, Mexican Americans, and the Transnational Struggle for Civil Rights in World War II Texas", ''Journal of American History'', 92 (March 2006
in History Cooperative
* Gutiérrez; Ramón A. ''When Jesus Came, the Corn Mothers Went Away: Marriage, Sexuality, and Power in New Mexico, 1500–1846'' (1991) * Márquez, Benjamin. ''LULAC: The Evolution of a Mexican American Political Organization'' (1993) * Matovina, Timothy M. ''Tejano Religion and Ethnicity, San Antonio, 1821–1860'' (1995) * David Montejano, Montejano, David. ''Anglos and Mexicans in the Making of Texas, 1836–1986'' (1987) * Muñoz, Laura K., "Desert Dreams: Mexican American Education in Arizona, 1870–1930" (PhD dissertation Arizona State University, 2006). Order No. DA3210182. * Quintanilla, Linda J., "Chicana Activists of Austin and Houston, Texas: A Historical Analysis" (University of Houston, 2005). Order No. DA3195964. * Sánchez; George I. ''Forgotten People: A Study of New Mexicans'' (1940; reprint 1996) on New Mexico * Taylor, Paul S. ''Mexican Labor in the United States''. 2 vols. 1930–1932, on Texas * Stewart, Kenneth L., and Arnoldo De León. ''Not Room Enough: Mexicans, Anglos, and Socioeconomic Change in Texas, 1850–1900'' (1993) * de la Teja, Jesús F. ''San Antonio de Béxar: A Community on New Spain's Northern Frontier'' (1995). * Tijerina, Andrés. ''Tejanos and Texas under the Mexican Flag, 1821–1836'' (1994), * Tijerina, Andrés. ''Tejano Empire: Life on the South Texas Ranchos'' (1998). * Timmons, W. H. ''El Paso: A Borderlands History'' (1990). * Trevino, Roberto R. ''The Church in the Barrio: Mexican American Ethno-Catholicism in Houston''. (2006). 308pp. * Weber, David J. ''The Mexican Frontier, 1821–1846: The American Southwest under Mexico'' (1982) ** Garcia, Richard A. "Changing Chicano Historiography", ''Reviews in American History'' 34.4 (2006) 521–528 in Project MUSE


Other regions

* Bullock, Charles S., and M. V. Hood, "A Mile‐Wide Gap: The Evolution of Hispanic Political Emergence in the Deep South". ''Social Science Quarterly'' 87.5 (2006): 1117–1135
Online
* García, María Cristina. ''Havana, USA: Cuban Exiles and Cuban Americans in South Florida, 1959–1994'' (1996)
excerpt and text search
* Korrol, Virginia Sánchez. ''From Colonia to Community: The History of Puerto Ricans in New York City, 1917–1948'' (1994) * Fernandez, Lilia. ''Brown in the Windy City: Mexicans and Puerto Ricans in Postwar Chicago'' (University of Chicago Press, 2012) * Millard, Ann V. and Chapa, Jorge. ''Apple Pie and Enchiladas: Latino Newcomers in the Rural Midwest''. 2004. 276 pp
excerpt and text search
* Murphy, Arthur D., Colleen Blanchard, and Jennifer A. Hill, eds. ''Latino Workers in the Contemporary South''. 2001. 224 pp. * Padilla, Felix M. ''Puerto Rican Chicago''. (1987). 277 pp. * Sãnchez Korrol, Virginia E. ''From Colonia to Community: The History of Puerto Ricans in New York City''. (1994
complete text online free in Californiaexcerpt and text search
* Vargas, Zaragosa. ''Proletarians of the North: A History of Mexican Industrial Workers in Detroit and the Midwest, 1917–1933'' (1993
complete text online free in Californiaexcerpt and text search
* Whalen, Carmen Teresa, and Victor Vásquez-Hernández, eds. '' The Puerto Rican Diaspora: Historical Perspectives'' (2005),


Primary sources

* Richard Ellis, ed. ''New Mexico Past and Present: A Historical Reader''. 1971. * David J. Weber; ''Foreigners in Their Native Land: Historical Roots of the Mexican Americans'' (1973), primary sources to 1912


External links


2000 Census

Hispanic Americans in Congress
– Library of Congress
Hispanic Americans in the U.S. Army


by Josh Miller, PBS, April 27, 2007
Latino in America
– CNN {{Authority control Hispanic and Latino American, * Hispanic and Latino American people, Multiracial ethnic groups in the United States