Esperanza: A Celebration of Hispanic Heritage and Hope

Each year a theme for Hispanic Heritage Month is chosen. This year’s theme invites us to celebrate Hispanic heritage and reflect on how great our tomorrow can be if we hold onto our resilience and hope. It encourages us to reflect on all of the contributions Hispanics have made in the past and will continue to make in the future. It is also a reminder that we are stronger together.

Resilience is the ability to bounce back, the capacity to overcome. Far too many have had to acquire this skill.  But once acquired, it serves us well. It proves we can triumph over adversity, surmount obstacles, and maneuver through roadblocks.

That allows hope to enter the picture. But that hope is not just a concept, and it becomes concrete when we plan the steps we will take to create a better future. It is the hope, la esperanza, that accompanies our knowing that we are creators.  We are all given the ability to create. We create dreams, we chart a path, and we summon the courage to act. When we work with others, we multiply our forces. Great things are accomplished more easily when involving others working toward the same goal.

In 1968, during the Lyndon B. Johnson Administration, Congress passed a resolution to celebrate the heritage of U.S. Latinos. The original week-long celebration was expanded to an entire month by President Regan in 1988.

The observance begins on September 15 to coincide with the Independence Days of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Mexico and Chile followed those on September 16 and September 18, respectively, and all gained independence from Spain.

The term Latino is preferred to Hispanic, although both are used interchangeably. Latinx is the newest term that covers all genders. All three terms refer to people who trace their roots to Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, El Salvador, Venezuela, Peru, Colombia, Argentina, Panama, Chile, Ecuador,  Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua Uruguay and Paraguay. Some people from Spain may designate themselves Hispanic. However, Spain is a European country with a majority composition of Caucasians.

Although fiercely proud of individual country of origin, Latinos closely relate to each other.  We share many things in common. The most prominent common denominator is the Spanish language, and Catholicism is also prevalent for religious affiliation. We share values like strong family ties.  Lastly, we all eat some form of rice and beans as a staple in our diets.

Latinos can be of any race, and they can have a mixture of bloodlines. Most Latinos have some combination of European (Spanish), Indigenous, and African blood.  However, there are also Asian Latinos.