By Hpolito Munoz, Managing Editor/Publisher
As we listen to folks who have been given a platform to spew hate, push vitriolic statements and ignore what Jesus actually professed and in many cases continue to create platforms for twisted minds to kill people and are excited to institutionalize a cruel process, we must act and not just discuss the nightmare that has been created by hate. If the current climate does not change, we will have more folks who desire to hurt others, find their target and feel vindicated to act on their desire to act on those ideas, including hurting children. We have folks who work for the most powerful county in the world target those that scare them and propose to continue attacking the most vulnerable, those with the least protections.
As we continue to experience the growth of the Latino/Hispanic Market we ignore the needs of a demographic that has, like other minority groups throughout the world, been maligned and hurt. We have accepted the “power” of consumption as viable proof that justifies the worth of communities. Unless there is money to be made or power to be gained from or through them, they are not considered deserving. Those that are being attacked are not new to these attacks, they left their place of birth because that place no longer cared for them, or never did and in many cases lived in struggle, pain and sadness. Immigrants don’t leave their families because they are okay, because opportunities abound for them, they run because the care about themselves and their families because they know the goodness that lies within them and will sacrifice everything trying to create a new legacy for their families, but many, especially folks like Stephen Miller and the administration he serves, prefers they die.
Heritage months were created to celebrate and recognize the accomplishments of the people selected for the month. The Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15 through October 15. In the 2010 Census more than 50.5 million people in the US identified themselves as Hispanic or Latino. As of 2019, the number has grown to 57.5 million or roughly 18.7% of the US population. With more than 1 million Hispanic residents in 10 US citizens including Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York and Texas, it’s a community that can create opportunity for unity and celebration through its culture and its people.
The opportunities to celebrate and uphold the beauty and virtue and individuals during Hispanic Heritage Month 2019, are vast and ripe for exploration in many of the cultures, communities and countries where the Hispanic community originates, including California, where Alta California was part of Mexico. Other inspirational ideas can be gained from the Mayan, Aztec and other civilizations to the celebratory Carnival events in Brazil, through the complex and beauty of the Incan civilization. Many of these events will help the children to connect to their vibrant identity or for those non-Hispanic or Latino, it may help them see and appreciate the depth of the community that lives with them.
In this moment, we have an administration that is deeply divisive, dismissive, fearful and hateful and has targeted the families of non-citizens of the US; these celebrations can create empathy and appreciation for those that need it the most. This Hispanic Heritage Month is a platform not just for celebration and appreciation, but also for reminding and demanding the humane treatment of all those vulnerable and in need.
