-via Huffington Post Latinos’ contributions to the development, welfare and culture of this country have been largely overlooked, and are not properly reflected in our nation’s museums. But that could soon change with the creation of a museum dedicated to the diverse contributions of Latinos in America. “A lot of folks don’t realize the incredible Read More

Did you grow up knowing you were Latino? I didn’t, not really. I lived in a very small world; home, church, school, family. Everyone spoke my language in my little world. Everyone looked like me in my little world. Everyone ate the same food. Our tenement and project apartments looked the same. How was I Read More

One day, while sitting on my uncle’s couch, I decided to pay attention to the Spanish news he was watching. As I was reflecting on how long it had been since I watched Spanish television, and how professional the reporters all sounded (compared to the Spanglish I am subjected to in Brooklyn) I heard the Read More

This isn’t going to be a Latino-themed story. The editorial staff was nice enough to let me spend this article telling you a tale of something as near and dear to me as my Latino heritage: my Italian heritage. True, I look Latino, speak Spanish and have a Latino last name, but growing up, I Read More

If you saw me on the streets, you wouldn’t call me Latina. I have fair skin. I have light brown hair. I only have an accent when I order enchiladas or arroz con pollo. You would probably call me a coconut because, until I read Cristopher Rubio’s post, I had no idea what a coconut Read More

Minutes after Academy Award nominated actor Terrence Howard watched a screening of The Latino List, a film which debuted last night on HBO, he told me, feeling very inspired by the compelling documentary, “what I loved most (about the film) was that there were no victims! The stories were unfiltered, honest and unapologetically Latino.” The documentary, by photographer and director Read More

via Reach Hispanic – Like many first-generation Hispanics I grew up in a bilingual household. I had the benefit of learning English at school and Spanish at home. I never really understood how much of a benefit I received by growing up bilingual. I didn’t have to take any classes, buy any software or get a Read More

On a visit to Colombia years ago, I was talking with my cousin when he abruptly asked me, “Y porque no tuteas?” I had no idea what he meant. He explained that I always use the usted form, instead of the tú form. I shrugged my shoulders, “Ay, yo no se!” and kept talking. This Read More

Mami and Papi were wrong when they told you graffiti was only “Cholos”, “gangsters”, and “thugs”. Growing up, mi familia always told me that they hated how “gang members” cheapened property value by adding graffiti to neighborhoods. I mean, I understand how city revenue is spent painting over graffiti on city property but this isn’t a discussion Read More

James Baldwin once said, “know from whence you came. If you know whence you came, there are absolutely no limitations to where you can go.” This week, as we celebrate the independence celebrations of various Latin American countries, remember where you came from. Remember your roots.