To support this claim, Rodriguez uses the example of Nixon’s inclination to divide America into five racial groups in the 1970s (407). From this point, Rodriguez focuses on one of the five racial groups: Hispanic. To illustrate the ludicrous nature of the term Hispanic to describe race, Rodriguez says that “such a definition suggests I have more in common with Argentine-Italians than with American Indians; that there is an ineffable union between the white Cuban and the mulatto Puerto Rican because of Spain” (407). Rodriguez uses this quote to show that the broad sense of the term “Hispanic” is not only misleading, but also incorrect when it is used to describe race. The term “Hispanic” classifies two arguably dissimilar groups such as Argentinians and Italians into one category.
Because Gonzalez ties together his historical research with the information gathered in immigrant interviews, he is able to stress the importance of individuality between each of the several Latino immigrant groups that are here in the United States. Lastly, for the third section labeled “harvest,” Gonzalez’s focal point is about the several issues regarding the Latinos living in the United States. He gives his advice about what we need to change as a country in order to guarantee success to Latinos in the United States. This is the strength of the third section of the book because
The author of “Hispanic Pride vs. American Assimilation,” Stephanie Cox, presents and explains Hispanic immigrants’ hesitancy to learn English very effectively. She begins by telling a personal story about meeting a Hispanic woman who wanted her son to learn English but refused to learn it herself. Cox was confused as to why the mother would refuse to learn English, so she did some research and found three possible causes of this situation: a pride in Hispanic peoples’ native countries--most specifically, Mexican-Americans, a close proximity to their native country, and the lack of support from other Hispanic Americans to assimilate to American culture and ideals. Cox’s explanation of the Hispanic reasonings aids in further understanding their situations.
Meredith Barger Dr. Moreno ETHN 1100 16 February 2015 In this week’s readings, the key points were about immigration, education, and citizenship. From “The Latino Generation: Voices of the New America” I learned a lot of information from reading Alma Cortez-Lara’s story on how her parents arrived in the United States and how she felt segregated in school because of the low Latino population in school. Alvaro Sanchez story of attending different school in the United States and Mexico was also interesting. In the article, Demanding their Rights: The Latino Struggle for Educational Access and Equity, McDonald talks about the bilingual schools in Texas.
Mexican Americans refer to other Mexican Americans of a lower class as Chicanos. Chicanos is used to identify the Mexican American as a product of a Spanish, Mexican and Indian heritage. Nowadays, the term is being used to identify the Mexican American as a product of a Spanish, Mexican, Indian heritage. Chicanos are doctors, university teachers, congressmen, and lawyers as well as farm laborers, housewives, plumbers, engineers and mailmen. Chicano literature reflects their stereotypes as boxers, school dropouts, gang leaders, revolutionaries and knife-fighters.
Foremost, the politics and etiquette surrounding the terms Hispanic and Latino/a, using them interchangeably, confuses many people – including myself before this class. This engenders the questions: who is Hispanic and who is Latino/a? Let us investigate the term Hispanic, which became “official” in the 1980 census and allowed one of Spanish or Spanish speaking descendent to identify as “Spanish/Hispanic” (Rodriguez 1992). Before the 1980 census, there was a common notion that such individuals had been born outside the US or were immigrant children (Rodriguez 1992). The 1980 census also allowed one to identify themselves based on ancestry and culture rather than by race, such as Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, or other.
Usually Latinos are treated as a race, but they are made up of different ethnic groups who belong to different countries. The major problem is colorism, which refers
"'Mexican' Is Not A Noun" by Francisco Alarcon, minorities have no agency, which means activities are done to them and they don't have control over what occurs in their lives. Towards the start of the poem, Alarcon says that Mexican is not "a thing or a descriptive word”. In the next stanza, he says that Mexican is “a life, long, low-paying job”. Alarcon utilizes similar sounding word usage by beginning words with "l" to underscore that Mexican's low paying employments are for all 0f life since they can't make tracks in an opposite direction, because of their absence of an agency and general separation in the public eye. At the end of the poem, Alarcon says that Mexican “strikes, burns, just like, a verb”.
Hispanics are Americans citizens who are products of the people of the Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America and Iberian Peninsula. Hispanics are a close net family and we are going to discuss the way they live. They are hard-working people and they have a strong belief in the bible. They also believe in helping each other and other people who outside of their race as well. They work very hard to take care of their family.
While the term Hispanic includes people from Spain and exclude people from Brazil. Latino is basically the opposite, people from Brazil are Latinos while people from Spain are not. The definition of the word is actually incredibly simple, it just means someone from Latin America. Now the problem comes from identifying where exactly Latin America is. Latin America is everywhere on the American continent that speak a language that comes from Latin (Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, Romanian) or Romance Languages.
societies in the world. These sub-cultures include Whites, African Americans, Asians, Irish, Latino, and European among others. Chicano refers to the identity of Mexican-American descendant in the United State. The term is also used to refer to the Mexicans or Latinos in general. Chicanos are descendants of different races such as Central American Indians, Spanish, Africans, Native Americans, and Europeans.
In the reading, “Latino vs. Hispanic: The Politics of Ethnic Names” by Linda Martin Alcoff mentions, “But in some areas of the USA such as New Mexico, much of Texas, and the south-east excluding California, ‘Hispanic’ is the preferred term and ‘Latino’ is a term used only by outsiders, thus indicating that geographical context will alter the terms’ political meanings” (396). This shows us that geography has influenced ethnic labels and identity depending on where you live. For example, those who identify as Hispanics might live in a complete different area of those who identify as Latino. Like Alcoff mentions, some might see the other as an outsider but it all depends where you are from. Not only is it influenced by geography but it’s also influenced by the way you are seen and how much power you have.
Did you ever think of the diversity of Hispanic heritage? Probably not, but you should because that heritage is truly remarkable. It is so outstanding in many different ways than other heritages, such as the amount of languages, culture, and the passion of all the people who proudly say that their Hispanic. That is why Hispanic Heritage month shows just how diverse the heritage really is. Do you know what being diverse really means?,
I believe the term, hispanic, itself does not define who I am. I define who I am and who I want to become. However, I do come from a Mexican heritage. Coming from a Mexican heritage has influenced and deeply impacted my life. My heritage has taught me a lot.
I grew up in a two-parent household with my parents being married before they had children. My father has always been the one that provides finically, while my mother was the one who took care of my siblings and I throughout my childhood. Being that both of my parents were born in Mexico, I consider myself Mexican American. I am proud to be Mexican American. Culture plays a huge role in shaping your identity.