Hispanic Americans
Hispanic Americans
Introduction;
The Hispanic Americans also known as Latinos, are a mix of subgroups with roots in various countries of Latin America .They are a vibrant and diverse population and are USA's largest minority community. In 2000 the U.S. census counted 34.3 million Hispanic or Latino Americans. Most experts think that an additional 2 to 3 million illegal Hispanic immigrants live in the United States
Mexican Americans
Mexican Americans are the largest subgroup of Hispanic Americans. They live mainly in the Southwestern part United States, especially in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado. The language spoken by Mexican Americans is Spanish. Many Mexican Americans do not feel a sense of belonging to the United States or Mexico. Some Mexican Americans think of seceding from the United States and creating an autonomous, self-sufficient nation known as Aztlán in theSouthwest.Mexican-Americans are active politically and have campaigned for voting rights, stood against educational and employment discrimination and stood for economic and social advancement. Mexican-Americans face a crisis with defining and maintaining their community's identity Today, although under census criteria and legally, they are classified as white, many Mexican Americans consider themselves and are socially classified as "non-white" by the United States population.
Most Mexican Americans occupy blue collar occupations and other low skilled jobs. They are not well represented in the professions.. Education level is lower than average and high school drop out is high. However there is an increase in average personal and household incomes for Mexican Americans in the 21st century. U.S. born Mexican Americans earn more and are represented more in the middle- and upper-class segments than recently arriving Mexican immigrants. They are Roman Catholics. The core of the Mexican-American social structure lies with the family. Although Women, are greatly revered, they are secondary to their husbands; the husbands are seen as the authority figure and the decision-maker for the family. Families are typically very large and the extended family is considered just as important as the immediate family.
Puerto Rican Americans
Puerto Ricans. are the second largest sub group in America with about 3.5 million Puerto Ricans living, primarily in New York and New Jersey. and 3.8 million living in Puerto Rico, a commonwealth associated with the United States. Puerto Ricans have the highest percentage of households speaking Spanish with English as a second language.
Puerto Ricans are very active in advocating their political and social rights and also preserving their cultural heritage There have been Puerto Rican Mayors in several cities.(Miami ,Hartford, Camden) Voter participation of Puerto Ricans is very high but they have very low voter registration. .Economically , they have the highest poverty rates among Hispanics( 22.8% of Families) However, because Puerto Rico is a U.S. commonwealth and Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, they are eligible for many federal benefits not available to other groups. Education is very low and there is high school drop out rates Puerto Ricans consider themselves Americans but are fiercely proud of their Island. Only 13% population above 25 years are college graduates. The strength of Puerto Rican identity and pride in the United States is indicated by the huge turnout in the annual National Puerto Rican Parade in New York City, not to mention the more than 50 other local Puerto Rican parades throughout the country. They are known for their warm hospitality and are very friendly and expressive to strangers. They make lively hand and body gestures and use hand and body language. as important means of communication. They are basically family oriented and are primarily Catholics.
Cuban Americans
Cuban Americans, constitute the third largest Hispanic American Community, and number 1.2 million.. The Cuban American is primarily concentrated in Florida, especially in the Miami area. Most Cuban Americans are political refugees who arrived after. the Cuban Revolution of 1959 , which brought Communist dictator Fidel Castro to power. They are mostly well-educated and belong to the middle and upper-middle classes. Although they speak Spanish at home they have a partial knowledge of English and an obvious sense of national identity.
Cuban Americans are considered intellectually refined among the Hispanics and are deeply dedicated and preoccupied with the fate of their homeland. Many Cuban Americans received government assistance in the United States as Political refugees. Partly because of these advantages, the Cuban American community is an economically successful group and have considerable political influence. Cuban Americans also exert considerable political and financial influence in Cuba.The Cuban-American community is made up not only by business people but also scientists, artists, writers, scholars, and blue-collar workers, as well as political activists advocating respect for human rights and democracy in Cuba.
There are five Cuban-Americans in the U.S. Congress, four in the House of Representatives and one in the Senate According to the 2000 Census, Cubans enjoy the highest levels of education among U.S. Hispanics, with 23% of those who are 25 years old graduated from colleges and universities. Pop music and Hollywood celebrities of Cuban origin such as late Celia Cruz, Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Andy Garcia, and Cameron Diaz, are well known. They are active and devoted Catholic s.and are strongly family oriented.
Central and South American origin
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Civil wars and economic chaos in Latin America have brought considerable numbers of emigrants from other countries since 1970. In 1980, clash between leftist guerrillas and the government brought about 500,000 people from El Salvador to USA .. They settled primarily in Washington, D.C, Florida, Massachusetts, and California. Also in the 1980s, Civil war in Nicaragua also drove around 800,000 Nicaraguans to the United States. Shrinking job market and political disturbances brought in a large immigration of Dominicans to the United States, mainly to New York City. These different waves of immigration have created a number of diverse Hispanic American communities with each having a unique identity in the United States.
Immigrants from South America, such as Colombia numbering 572000, Ecuador with 330,000, and Peru numbering 271,000, are concentrated in the Northeast. Spanish is the primary language in most household. Their political awareness is very low and they are not well represented in politics.Since they do not have political representation they are ignored and discriminated, underserved and underemployed., Many Colombians tend to favor conservative political ideologies and support the Republicans, while Dominicans favour the Democrats; School drop out rate is high. They have only 17.2% of above 25 year olds as College graduates. Economically they are among the poorest Group among the Hispanics. Most of them occupy blue collar Jobs. Their faith is Roman Catholic. Family orientation is high and the men occupy the central position in the household.
Conclusion:
The Hispanic Americans although they have some basic similarities are a culturally diverse group and this is reflected in their varied national groups and cosmopolitan roots of different Latin American cultures. . Cuban Americans have built grouped themselves. with Jewish Americans. Puerto Ricans have built similar alliances with African Americans Although most Hispanics speak Spanish, each subgroup have the pronunciation and slang of its homeland. Similarly, while most Hispanic Americans follow the Roman Catholic Church, they have different religious traditions from their homelands. In the Spanish-speaking nations of the Caribbean, Catholic religious practices reveal strong African sway as a result of the slave trade that took place in the region. In Central and South America, the Catholic Church are influenced by the religious traditions of pre-Colombian civilizations of Native Americans They also have varied taste in cuisine. While Rice and beans are important ingredients in most Latin American cuisines, corn is the staple of the Mexican diet, and plantains and batatas (sweet potatoes) are the staple foods in Cuba and Puerto Rico. Despite these differences there is a new awareness among various Hispanic subgroups to emphasize their historical and cultural similarities in order to forge political alliances and create a potential power group in the political arena
Reference
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