Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! In St Andrews, September 15th is just another day in the Martinmas Semester; our town brims with the nervous energy of students eager to settle into the academic year after a week of cozying into their flats and decorating with new plants, posters, and textbooks.
However, in the US, September 15th marks the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month—a time to honor and celebrate the vibrant culture and long-standing achievements of American Latinos. These achievements have profoundly shaped the US, from its history and politics to its arts and culture. In my home city Los Angeles, Mexican independence parades cascade into the streets and companies begin showcasing Latinx authors, employees, celebrities, and more.
While some might diminish the importance of Hispanic Heritage Month in St Andrews, I would argue it is equally important here. The UK is home to a fast growing Latin American population, with approximately 145,000 Hispanic people living in London and around a quarter of a million Latinos living in the UK. St Andrews is also a highly international campus and, throughout my three years here, I have met many other Latinx students eager to celebrate their culture and history with others.
Similarly, there has never been a more important time to educate oneself on Hispanic history. It would be wrong to write this article without acknowledging the Supreme Court’s defense of Trump’s targeted ICE deportations in the US. This week, the Supreme Court granted federal agents the right to stop people in LA for appearing to be Latino immigrants based on race, economic standing, language, and other arbitrary factors. These targeted deportations have raised the alarm bells for civil rights activists, who argue the Supreme Court has “effectively legalized racial profiling.”
In the US, far right extremists have long fought to ‘other’ Latinos as non-American (a fact which is particularly ironic considering many Latinos have indigenous American ancestry). They are attempting to dehumanize Latin American immigrants and erase the simple fact that Latinos are and always have been fundamentally American. The Latino population is not only the second largest ethnic group in the country and holds a profound place in US history and culture— several US states were once even a part of Mexico!
These raids make it more important than ever to celebrate the accomplishments of the Latinx community. After this week’s news, it’s an important reminder to see how many incredible young Latina women just like us have changed the world in spite of those who try to discredit their hard-work and accomplishments. As Dolores Huerta, iconic Chicana activist for women, immigrants, and laborers once said in regards to standing up and creating seemingly impossible change: si, se puede (yes, it is possible). Latina women have always been trail-blazers in the US and beyond. Read below to discover some of the incredible accomplishments and changes made by Latinas!
- Sonia Sotomayor
Sonia Sotomayor, the daughter of Puerto Rican immigrants, started out watching crime shows in The Bronx as a little girl. Inspired by her love of crime shows, she fostered a passion for law. She began her career with a bang, graduating summa cum laude from Prince University before later attending Yale Law School. She became the first Hispanic person and third woman ever to serve on the Supreme Court. Today, she uses her position to uphold democratic ideals and fights for the Latinx community. She was the first Supreme Court Justice to use the term ‘undocumented immigrant’ instead of ‘illegal alien‘. She also has dissented against the Supreme Court’s upholding of ICE raids targeting LA Latinos, asserting they violate US constitutional freedoms.
- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC)
Like Sonia Sotomayor, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) grew up in The Bronx in a working-class Puerto-Rican American and immigrant family. According to Brittanica, her parents taught her the value of education and fought for her to receive better educational opportunities. She worked hard, eventually graduating cum laude from Boston University. However, during her time at university, she dealt with personal hardships, including her father’s death from lung cancer and resulting medical bills alongside student debt. These experiences, compounded with her experience as a sexual assault survivor, led her to advocate for the importance of education, healthcare, housing, immigration opportunities, and to speak out about trauma. Like many, post-college AOC worked in the non-profit sector alongside working as a waitress. She worked her way up, supporting Bernie Sanders’ campaign and eventually becoming the youngest Latina congresswoman ever and the first woman of color to represent NY-14. Today, she is known for being a Democratic Socialist and fighting for social justice issues such as economic inequality and the climate.
- Joan Chandos Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is a timeless Mexican-American singer, songwriter, artist, and iconic civil rights activist. In her youth, she faced discrimination for her Mexican-American identity and struggled as a college dropout before her rise to fame in the 1960s. According to Life Stories, Joan Baez has achieved what most artists can only dream of; she released over 30 albums, received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and is now in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She is also a devoted activist who has incorporated social justice into her artistry. Throughout her life, she prized empathy, performed beside Dr. Martin Luther King at the 1963 Washington for Jobs and Freedom march, founded the Institute for the Study of Nonviolence, and sang in support of a plethora of human rights issues and environmental justice.
- Lizzie Velásquez
As a Latina entrepreneur, anti-bullying advocate, and motivational speaker, Lizzie Velásquez is nothing short of inspirational. Lizzie was born with a rare disease called MFLS that affects her appearance. In high school, she experienced cyberbullying at the hands of peers, who posted a video of her called The World’s Ugliest Woman that mocked her appearance and condition. As a result, she began advocacy work, giving TED talks and publishing multiple books, including children’s books encouraging kindness, empathy, and self-acceptance alongside a memoir and documentary about her experiences. She also has fought to create legislative changes, giving testimony to encourage Congress to pass anti-bullying legislation.
- Yulimar Rojas
Yulimar Rojas, also nicknamed Queen of The Triple Jump, is a Venezuelan Olympic athlete and LGBTQ+ rights activist. As she grew up, her interests in athletics led her to track and field, where she honed her athletic prowess and eventually found her calling with the triple jump. After messaging Olympic gold medalist Iván Pedroso, she began training with him for the world’s most prestigious athletic competitions. As she competed, she not only became Venezuela’s first female Olympic gold medalist but also broke multiple world records, jumping 15.74 meters (51.64 feet).