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21 Things You Didn’t Know About Hispanic Heritage Month
EQUITY COMMITTEE SPOTLIGHT
BY CATHY GARZA
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Every other month, space normally used for the Austin Bar President’s Column will be dedicated to content chosen by the Austin Bar’s Equity Committee.
Hispanic Heritage Month is a national celebration to honor the history, culture, and overall contributions Hispanics have made to the United States.
Hispanic Heritage Month Generally
1. National Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15 and started as Hispanic Heritage Week.
2. Representative Edward Roybal of Los Angeles sponsored legislation to establish Hispanic Heritage Week, which was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968.
3. In 1988, legislation expanding the week into a month was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan.
4. Hispanic Heritage Month begins on Sept. 15 because it is the anniversary of the independence of five Hispanic countries—Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua—which declared their independence in 1821.
5. Mexico celebrates its independence day on Sept. 16 (not Cinco de Mayo!), and Chile’s independence day is on Sept. 18.
Hispanic/Latino(a)/Latinx
6. While many people use Hispanic or Latino(a) interchangeably, the terms have different meanings.
7. Hispanic is a linguistic division and includes people who speak Spanish or whose ancestors come from a Spanish-speaking country.
8. Latino(a) is a geographic division and includes people from or whose ancestors come from Latin America. For example, Brazilians would be considered Latinos, but not Hispanics, because they speak Portuguese.
9. Latinx is a gender-neutral alternative to Latino(a).
Hispanic Population Today
10. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of July 1, 2019, the Hispanic population constitutes the largest ethnic or racial minority in the United States, making up 18% of the nation’s population.
11. As of 2019, there are 12 states with a population of 1 million or more Hispanic residents: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Texas.
12. Spanish is the second most spoken language in the United States.
Mexican-American War (1846–1848)
13. On May 13, 1846, at President James Polk's request, Congress voted to declare war on Mexico in a territorial dispute over Texas.
14. The Mexican-American War officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo on Feb. 2, 1848.
15. The treaty added 525,000 square miles to the United States, including land that makes up Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. Mexico also gave up its claims to Texas, recognizing the Rio Grande River as the United States’ southern boundary.
Notable Hispanics
16. In 1993, Dr. Ellen Ochoa was the first Hispanic woman astronaut to go into space.
17. Carlos Santana was the first Hispanic to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. He has won over 10 Grammy Awards during his career.
18. In 2009, Sonia Maria Sotomayor became the first Latina Supreme Court Justice.
Notable Supreme Court Cases
19. In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court extended constitutional rights under the Fourteenth Amendment to Mexican Americans in the landmark case Hernandez v. Texas. In 1950, Pete Hernandez was charged with murder and found guilty by an all-white jury in Jackson County, Texas. Gustavo “Gus” Garcia, a Mexican American civil rights attorney, appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteed protection on the basis of race and class. While Mexican Americans were classified as white, Garcia and his legal team demonstrated that Texas had unreasonably singled out Mexican Americans as “a class apart” when they were excluded from jury duty, depriving the defendant of equal protection. In a unanimous decision delivered by Chief Justice Earl Warren, the Supreme Court extended constitutional protection to racial and ethnic groups facing discrimination.
20. On June 18, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision holding that the Trump administration’s attempt to end Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (“DACA”) was improper and in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act. DACA provides “Dreamers”—immigrants brought to the United States as children—“deferred action,” a status that allows them to obtain work visas and protects them from deportation. DACA recipients are required to pass an extensive background check and renew their application every two years to remain in the program. While it was an important victory for Dreamers and immigration advocates, the administration could attempt to rescind the program again.
Hispanic Bar Association of Austin
21. Last year, the Hispanic Bar Association of Austin (HBAA) raised over $80,000 for scholarships for Hispanic college students, law students, and prospective law students. Donations to the HBAA Charitable Foundation can be made year-round at hispanicbaraustin.com/hbaafoundation. AL
Cathy Garza is an associate at Eversheds Sutherland. She advises clients on commercial and regulatory litigation matters before state and federal courts and the Public Utility Commission of Texas. Garza is a member of the Austin Bar Equity Committee's leadership team and the AYLA Board of Directors.
