Hispanic Culture and It’s Role in the United States Immigrants have always played a critical role within the diverse country of the United States. Although there are a variety of opinions and viewpoints regarding immigrants and the minorities they represent, no one can deny that they have a large impact on the political atmosphere and cultural standing of America. Throughout recent history, those of Hispanic descent have played one of the largest roles within minorities. The expansive and unique cultures that the categorization of Hispanic defines crossbreeds with typical Anglo culture to result in a new and diverse socioeconomic variety. The importance of Hispanic-Americans has been emphasized to great extent in the recent years as the climbing …show more content…
number of immigrants, as well as American-born Hispanics, have played a vital role in political debates and the rearing of children. Issues stemming from opinions surrounding multilingualism have also added to the ongoing debates concerning Hispanic minorities. I have learned from this experience that despite differences, Hispanic culture’s diverse background and unique viewpoints deserve recognition and implementation into that of the United States, as well as consideration pertaining to Hispanic-American socioeconomic and political standings in order to fluidly integrate the ever-growing minority. Coming from a family background adorned with many Hispanic relatives, immigration and the importance of minority viewpoints has always held value. A large portion of relatives on my mother’s side are bilingual, speaking both English and Spanish. The result of such an experience has led to the belief that being able to speak two languages is not only incredibly helpful, but can be an impetus to the growth of a person due to the ability to converse with an entirely different group of people. Growing up in California already put me in an advantageous situation, as many public schools place an emphasis on learning Spanish at a very young age. The elementary school I grew up attending had a Spanish class required for all in 4th grade, and would have continued throughout each grade had I not moved to Oak Ridge. The schools placed an emphasis on the advantages of speaking another language, including better economic opportunities as well as societal advantages. I believe bilingualism and bilingual education should be a staple and emphasized throughout American culture in order to better understand and communicate with not only our bordered neighbors, but potentially our friends and family. Hispanic culture has helped emphasize the importance of family and created a much tighter bond between my extended family and me. I have learned the importance of respect and admiration for those of higher societal standings than yourself, whether that be elders or people of esteemed position. Political viewpoints surrounding immigration and personal ideals have been instilled from family of Hispanic descent to me, and I believe myself to be more informed and well-rounded because of it. The current state of the United States is the product of almost entirely immigrants, stemming from before it was even a country. The foundation of America is built upon immigrants work and the melting pot of political viewpoints, cultures, and ideals from around not only Europe, but the world. Interviewing my father, a middle-class worker in Oak Ridge, about his political standpoints on whether or not immigrants should be openly and easily (ie no strict barriers to entry) allowed to enter the United States from countries of Hispanic origin, brought about the ideals of one sample of the majority population. My father is both white and middle-class, and his answer disclosed that he believes there should be barriers to entry in order to not oversaturate the job market, but allow all or a large majority of those who meet the strenuous requirements to come into America. He further reasoned that barriers to immigrate that can be crossed would allow those who are very eager and willing to be productive members of society to enter, while not oversaturating the market by those daunted by hard work. His viewpoint brings about the political debate about how Hispanics fit into American Society. Like all people on a whole, there are a variety of individuals who do not definitively fit any one specific stereotype, however many Hispanics share a similar set of core values. As the video “What’s in a name describes” describes, most Hispanics have strong ties to family, value respect of others, and are strong proponents of religious values (many being Catholic). While the majority do share values outlined in the video, minority groups are not as well represented. With an emphasis on minorities described in the Hispanic-American relationship, I disagree with describing any one culture with a broad-spectrum set of ideals and values. Hispanic culture consists of so many different countries and individual towns (which IS described in the video) that it is incredibly hard to use a blanket definition to describe Hispanics. Information gleaned from the videos opened my eyes to many cultural experiences that Hispanic people partake in that I otherwise would have not known about.
Ranging from the political aspects of Hispanics, which I knew very little about, to the belief that some things are destined by God’s fate, the videos provided a broad overview of how Hispanic society works. Although the videos gave blanket and descriptions of Hispanics, it would be incredibly difficult and lengthy to give a good definition of each individual Hispanic culture. Key issues were described for Latinos and were covered arguably well and unbiased. The most interesting topic covered in my opinion, bilingualism and Spanish in education, prompted my question to a Math professor. I asked whether or not he thought it is beneficial for all students be exposed to a second language at a young age. He returned with a description of all the positive benefits and personal anecdotes of students he has taught and how bilingualism has proven to be a positive experience in some way or …show more content…
another. The political atmosphere of the United States has a plethora of strong perspectives on how Hispanic-Americans should be treated as well as accommodated too.
A huge position, hotly debated, is language. The language of Hispanics, which is dictated by the upbringing and education of youth, primarily becomes a matter of bilingualism within the United States. Some people desire to not only retain English as the official language, but make it a law, as described by the Ted Talk “No Child Left Monolingual.” However, there are actually many benefits to being bilingual. The Ted Talk persuaded me to believe and fully commit to the benefits of multilingualism. Descriptions detail how cognitive ability increases and reduction of Alzheimer’s gives physical benefits as well as the obvious social ones. I asked the opinion of my Hispanic and bilingual cousin regarding how she felt about the current political situation in terms of Hispanic-American importance, and she basically recapped many of the viewpoints of the Maria Elena Salinas and Jorge Ramos interview. My cousin described how she felt as if many promises were made to the Latino population in order to get their vote, which carries more weight as the population becomes more significant, but then immediately pushed to the side once the candidate was
elected. Based on my cousin’s standpoint, I believe future candidates will continue to bring up issues of Hispanic people while never addressing them once they come to office. Journalists such as Jorge and Maria are necessary in politics in order to actually press candidates to address issues regarding the Hispanic population. The large growth of Latino people are going to lead to a balancing of minorities if the trend continues, and it will be necessary to cover a broad spectrum of people from both the Anglo and Hispanic ends. I questioned a fellow student whether or not they believe Spanish language will still be prevalent and used to the extent as it is now in the future. He responded by claiming that Spanish will grow as the Hispanic population is in America. He did not believe the push for Hispanic people to speak English will be detrimental to the use of Spanish, but instead create a better system of bilingualism. A lot of culture is carried through language, and I believe that Spanish will be relevant as long as Hispanic culture is. As long as companies like Univision attempt to “reach all audiences” through incorporating both English and Spanish targeted media, Spanish language will remain at large. Hispanic culture as a whole is moving in an upward trend in terms of prevalence and population. I believe Americans need to take a broader stance and be less cultural isolated, allowing other cultures that are equally as important as typical Anglo culture to blend into the United States. Information from the videos provided invoked questions and new values in me. Hispanics in the U.S. have different cultural values, but also share many of the same as I do. They emphasize family and teach respect for all, things that we should all take into account. Although I love the blending of cultures currently occurring in the U.S., I feel as if the political situation for Hispanic people could be better. They do not have equality in representatives in political doings as well as the media, and the situation needs to be improved. Bilingual education will positively affect our youth with the ability to communicate with other cultures and even increase their longevity and cognitive ability. Overall, the experience offered an addition for information regarding Hispanic culture other than what I have learned from my family, and allowed me to be more open to the struggles that people that are different than me face.
The Latino community is a very varied community each with its own unique past and circumstances. In the book Harvest of Empire by Juan Gonzalez the readers can learn and appreciate some of the experiences and history that the different Latino groups had. This book does this with a special emphasis on immigration trends. These points of emphasis of the book are explained thoroughly in the identification of the key points, the explanation of the intersection of race, ethnicity, and class, in addition to the overall evaluation of the book.
A question that every high school student is faced with is: “What extracurricular activities so you participate in?” Some can answer confidently while others are slapped with a moment of sudden realization. These people are just floating along with the crowd, with no driving force or motivation. What I believe differentiates me from my peers and gives me a sense of uniqueness, is what I do outside of my academia. Out of the deluge of activities that are available, Latinos In Action is the one that I feel the most passionate about and shapes my persona the most.
It is in the solving of social problems in which Hispanics can be of tremendous service to the country. One of the greatest attributes of hispanics is the willingness to mix, and by doing so, have created cultural forms, new human relationships, and life styles. Because this, Hispanics can help look for solutions to barriers, prejudices, and stereotypes that have divided us as a
It is crucial to understand the historical context of immigration in America. Initially, most immigrants were from Europe and were not restricted by any immigration laws. Now, most immigrants come from Latin America but are restricted to severe immigration laws. The Latino/a community is one of the most severely affected groups because the current immigration system disproportionally affects Latino/as. Recognizing how the experience of Latino/a immigrants have been both similar and different in the past from other immigrant groups and dispelling common misconceptions about Latino/as today brings awareness of how Latino/as are affected.
Language is an important value for the nationalistic identity of a nation. Hispanic culture is the way of life of people from Latin America and Spain, and their main identifying factor is the fact that they speak Spanish as their main language. Therefore, Hispanics are not necessarily Spaniards but other groups like Mexicans, Puerto Ricans and Cubans who speak Spanish are also part of this group (Shaw and Dennison 207). American culture on the other hand is mainly comprised of the people who speak English as their main dialect. Therefore, the Spaniards have Spanish as their native language while the Americans use Englis...
The increase and changing demography in the United State today, with the disparities in the health status of people from different cultural backgrounds has been a challenge for health care professionals to consider cultural diversity as a priority. It is impossible for nurses and other healthcare professionals to learn and understand theses diversity in culture, but using other approaches like an interpreter is very helpful for both nurses and patients. In this paper of a culturally appropriate care planning, I will be discussing on the Hispanic American culture because, I had come across a lot of them in my career as a nurse. The Hispanic are very diverse in terms of communication and communities and include countries like Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, South and Central America, and some of them speak and write English very well, some speaks but can’t write while some can’t communicate in English at all but Spanish.
Bilingual education offers a completely different world for students of different ethnic background and thus creates a comfort zone limiting the risk-taking factor necessary for the maturation of a child to an adult. Rodriguez argues supporters of bilingualism fail to realize "while one suffers a diminished sense of private individuality by becoming assimilated into public society, such assimilation makes possible the achievement of public individuality" (Rodriguez 26). He explains that the imperative "radical self-reformation" required by education is lost by offering bilingual education and such a program suggests a place where the need for a sense of public identity disappears. A bilingual program gives a student the opportunity to be separated from real life and institutes a life that leaves out an essential understanding of the world. Bilingual students do not know the complexities of their world, including emotion, ethics, and logic, because the bilingual program secludes the eager minds to a much simpler, more naïve idea of how the society works, leaving out the confidence of belonging in public. This situation not only limits the education experience for non-English speaking students, but also hinders the further education of English speaking students by erecting a communicat...
Child rearing and family structure within the Hispanic culture is noticeably different than what is present in the mainstream Western culture of today. One apparent difference is in gender roles. There exists a vastly different expectation in Hispanic culture for males and females. The male is considered to be the independent breadwinner, and the head of the household. Accordingly, the female role is one of submission and provider of childcare. In contrast, it is more than acceptable in Western culture for a female to maintain a non-traditional role. Hispanic culture additionally differs from Western culture in the traditional makeup of the family. Within Hispanic culture the extended family plays a huge role
Another struggle for identity with Latinos is their struggle with the Spanish and English languages. While some Latinos may speak Spanish in their homes, the language may not be conversationally used in their schools. Some Lat...
Latinos have struggled to discover their place inside of a white America for too many years. Past stereotypes and across racism they have fought to belong. Still America is unwilling to open her arms to them. Instead she demands assimilation. With her pot full of stew she asks, "What flavor will you add to this brew?" Some question, some rebel, and others climb in. I argue that it is not the Latino who willingly agreed to partake in this stew. It is America who forced her ideals upon them through mass media and stale history. However her effort has failed, for they have refused to melt.
What is culture? Many people ask themselves this question every day. The more you think about it the more confusing it is. Sometimes you start leaning to a culture and then people tell you you’re wrong or they make you feel like a different person because of your culture. I go through this almost every day. Because of the way I was raised I love Mexican rodeo but I was born and raised in Joliet. This can be very difficult trying to understand culture. I live in this huge mix of culture. Culture is personal. People can have many cultures especially in America and because of globalization. Cultural identity is not one or the other, it is not Mexican or American. Cultural identity is an individual relevant thing.
The Hispanic community represents many nationalities and ethnicities, including Mexicans, Cubans, Puerto Ricans, 15 Central and South American countries, Spain, and the Dominican Republic (Cattan, 1993). Hispanic group are well known in the workforce, politics, education, social economic and religion. The Spanish culture influences a variety of areas such as music, food, language. Most languages are rooted in Latin. It is always good to learn about other cultures if we expect the same consideration when we visit other countries. Differences are what make life interesting. Majority of the United States is built on immigration, which has made this country the most diverse. And the Hispanic group contributes to that diversity.
Bilingual education in public schools has been the topic of much discussion over the last several years. This discussion has been prompted due to the ever increasing numbers of Spanish-speaking persons emigrating to the United States, especially in those states that border Mexico--California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. What the debate seems always to overlook is our country’s other non-English speaking members. This country is now and has always been the “Melting Pot” for the world with persons emigrating to this country from most every country in the world; however, we commonly gear the focus of bilingual education toward our Spanish-speaking citizens.
In order to learn more about the bilingual education program in the Public School system, we felt it would be essential to discuss a few controversial issues with some bilingual teachers, and ask them for their opinion on the effectiveness of the system and the concept of bilingual education. We also questioned the benefits and disadvantages of the program. We wrote and asked these question with Latino (Puerto Rican) migrants in mind, however the Public School system consists of many ethnic groups which speak other languages other than Spanish. As one of the teachers stated, the political connotation that Bilingual Education carries is that of concerning only Spanish and English. We interviewed Mrs. Aida Ramos (Vice-Principal), Ms. Clara Velez (Bilingual Math Teacher), Mrs. Irene Killian (TESOL), Ms. Zoraida Ortiz (Bilingual Science Teacher), and Ms. Nancy Harrison (TESOL/Bilingual Computer Lab Teacher).
Bilingual Education began in the United States in the mid- 60’s. The time that the bilingual movement started coincided with the height of the civil-rights movement for African Americans. During this time there was a great outcry from Latino activist that protested against discrimination that led to a high drop out rate for Spanish speaking students. In 1968 congress approved a bill to aide in equal education opportunities, this was the Bilingual Education Act. Its intentions were merely to help Limited English Proficient (LEP) students become literate in English, today goals of Bilingual education have advanced (Porter 2003). On...