America in context

Frank Romero is a Mexican-American muralist. (AP Images)

Hispanics, the largest and fastest-growing minority in the United States, are changing American society and culture.

The Census Bureau estimates that 46.9 million people in the United States, or 15.4 percent of the population, are Hispanic or Latino (the terms are used interchangeably by the bureau). Hispanics are defined in the census as U.S. residents of any race whose origins are from Spain, Mexico, or the Spanish-speaking countries of Central and South America and the Caribbean. Their numbers are projected to grow to 133 million, or 30 percent of the U.S. population, by 2050.

Hispanics are the nation’s youngest ethnic population, with a median age of 27.7 years — nine years younger than the general population. Slightly more than one-fifth, or 22 percent, of America’s children are Hispanic, and by 2050, some 39 percent will be Hispanic, according to projections.

Nearly two-thirds of Hispanics in the United States are of Mexican heritage, and the rest have origins in one of at least 19 other countries, each with distinctive cultures. They add their traditions to those they find in the United States, introducing new foods, music, arts, celebrations and ideas.

Hispanics “have enriched our culture and brought creativity and innovation to everything from sports to the sciences and from the arts to our economy,” said President Obama in his National Hispanic Heritage Month proclamation. “The story of Hispanics in America is the story of America itself. The Hispanic community’s values — love of family, a deep and abiding faith, and a strong work ethic — are America’s values.”

POLITICS

Latinos fill several top positions in the U.S. government, including Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar.

Nearly 12 percent of President Obama’s nominees for senior administration positions are Latinos, more than those of any other president. In addition, there are 25 Hispanics in the U.S. Congress and more than 5,600 Hispanic state and local elected officials. In the 2008 presidential election, Latinos cast ballots in record numbers — nearly 10 million. They comprised 7.4 percent of all voters in 2008, up from 6 percent in 2004.

ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE

The United States has the world’s fifth-largest Spanish-speaking population. More and more products, advertising and media — both English and Spanish — are targeted to Hispanic consumers, whose purchasing power is projected to grow to $1.2 trillion by 2012.

Hispanic-American musicians are a lively part of U.S. popular culture, performing in a broad range of genres — from pop, rock, and rap to salsa, Latin jazz and reggaeton. Some well-known performers and groups include Christina Aguilera, Marc Anthony, Joan Baez, Daddy Yankee, Gloria Estefan, Fat Joe, Los Lobos, Jennifer Lopez, Ricky Martin, Ozomatli and Carlos Santana. International stars such as Ruben Blades, Enrique Iglesias, Juanes, Luis Miguel, Alejandro Sanz and Shakira also have fans in the United States.

Among many prominent Hispanics in American film and television today are actors Jessica Alba, Cameron Diaz, America Ferrera, Andy Garcia, Salma Hayek, John Leguizamo, Eva Mendes, Eva Longoria Parker, Martin Sheen, Jimmy Smits, Benicio del Toro, comedian George Lopez and director Robert Rodriguez.

A number of visual artists and writers have sought to capture the Hispanic-American experience, including contemporary painters Soraida Martinez, John Valadez, Frank Romero and Arnaldo Roche, and sculptor Richard Serra. In 2007, the Museo Alameda, the nation’s largest museum dedicated to Latino culture and art, opened in San Antonio as an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution. Two Hispanics have won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction: Oscar Hijuelos in 1990 and Junot Diaz in 2008.

Major Hispanic-American figures in the fashion industry include Isabel Toledo and Narciso Rodriguez, who have designed clothes for first lady Michelle Obama.

SPORTS

Many Latinos have become U.S. sports heroes, like baseball players Nomar Garciaparra, Pedro Martinez, David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez. More than 25 percent of players in Major League Baseball (MLB) are from Latin American countries. Nine Latinos have been inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame; the first was Puerto Rico’s Roberto Clemente, who died in a 1972 airplane crash while delivering humanitarian supplies to Nicaraguan earthquake victims. The Hispanic influence is apparent in other sports, notably football (called soccer in the United States). The game’s growing popularity in the United States is at least partly attributable to the infusion of Hispanic immigrants.

By Louise Fenner
Staff Writer