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Staff Editorial: Latino heritage more important than single-month celebration
Issue date: 10/26/09 Section: Opinions
Latin American Heritage Month has come and gone, but that does not mean learning about Latin Americans and other cultures should be restricted to a single month.
The month - which focuses on the history, heritage and contributions of Latin American citizens - began in 1968 by President Lyndon Johnson as Hispanic Heritage Week. President Ronald Reagan expanded it to 30 days from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15.
Sept. 15 is when Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua became independent nations. Mexico, Chile and Belize also celebrate their independence during this time.
Congress passed the 30-day section of the year to recognize a significant number of United States citizens.
In a 2005 census estimate, the Hispanic population is the nation's largest ethnic or race minority with 42.7 million citizens in the U.S. This constitutes 14 percent of the nation's total population.
The month is for educating everyone about how Latino citizens have helped American society with their social contributions.
Eastern has been celebrating this month since 1991.
"It has been very successful since then," said Juanita Cross, minority recruitment/retention coordinator of Minority Affairs in the Sept. 18 edition of Minority Today. "Our campus and community look forward to the events and show their support every year."
Cross headed the Latin American Heritage Month committee that consisted of members from across campus and the community.
The committee chose the specific theme to be "United in Diversity," because Latino people hail from many nations.
Activities and events ranged from a banquet and Mexican folk art, to lectures, films and dancing.
These activities are beneficial for Eastern students and the community to experience, but experience should not stop at the end of one month.
The Daily Eastern News knows there are months for celebrating the culture of African Americans, Asians, LGBT, women, and American Indians.
The month - which focuses on the history, heritage and contributions of Latin American citizens - began in 1968 by President Lyndon Johnson as Hispanic Heritage Week. President Ronald Reagan expanded it to 30 days from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15.
Sept. 15 is when Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua became independent nations. Mexico, Chile and Belize also celebrate their independence during this time.
Congress passed the 30-day section of the year to recognize a significant number of United States citizens.
In a 2005 census estimate, the Hispanic population is the nation's largest ethnic or race minority with 42.7 million citizens in the U.S. This constitutes 14 percent of the nation's total population.
The month is for educating everyone about how Latino citizens have helped American society with their social contributions.
Eastern has been celebrating this month since 1991.
"It has been very successful since then," said Juanita Cross, minority recruitment/retention coordinator of Minority Affairs in the Sept. 18 edition of Minority Today. "Our campus and community look forward to the events and show their support every year."
Cross headed the Latin American Heritage Month committee that consisted of members from across campus and the community.
The committee chose the specific theme to be "United in Diversity," because Latino people hail from many nations.
Activities and events ranged from a banquet and Mexican folk art, to lectures, films and dancing.
These activities are beneficial for Eastern students and the community to experience, but experience should not stop at the end of one month.
The Daily Eastern News knows there are months for celebrating the culture of African Americans, Asians, LGBT, women, and American Indians.
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Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
J
posted 10/26/09 @ 1:53 PM CST
Everyone should stop using the word 'race' in the same sentence as 'Hispanic'. Argentina has mostly Whites, Cuba has mostly Blacks, Guatemala has mostly Indians, and so on. (Continued…)
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