The History of the Hispanics
Immigration
Hispanic is a term coined by the United States to refer to a very diverse and large population of Spanish speaking people or language. The Hispanic Americans are a people who originated from either Spain or Portugal. They are Latinos of American descent referred to as either Cuban, Mexican or descended from Puerto Rican living in the United States of America. The Hispanic population makes up the largest minority group in America. The Mexican ethnic group is the largest Hispanic subdivision in the United States and makes up almost 11% of the American population. The Hispanic population is highly concentrated in the States of Carolina, Florida, Texas, and New York (Clutter & Nieto, n.d). The Spanish were amongst the pioneers of the United States of America. The first citizens in America southwest territories were the Hispanics. The territory was formed after the Mexican American war. There were a majority in most of the states up to the 20th century.
Hispanic Culture
The Hispanic culture consists of norms and customs that are unique to the Hispanic people. The family is held as a very important unit of society. The family takes precedence over individual needs. The Hispanics are raised up to be cooperative (Clutter & Nieto, n.d). They usually are taught to live communally and to share what they have with their neighbors. In addition, most Hispanics value the present time more than the future. They focus more on the needs at present and little change. Hence, they mostly focus on short than long term goals.
The Hispanics also show a formal communication style. They value respect and make use of formal titles. Touching is a way that they mostly use to show affection (Clutter & Nieto, n.d). They regard handshakes and a light kiss on the cheek as a form of greeting between men and women and close family friends. In addition, Hispanics tend to be polite which might lead one to believe that they are servile or subservient. Moreover, Hispanics are usually too permissive with their children, and hardly correct their children in public. This may lead to the children becoming delinquent. The child is raised to be highly dependent on the parent, which influences their decision-making patterns later in life.
The Hispanics also put a lot of importance on appearance and looks especially how a person presents himsef or herself basing on clothes (Clutter & Nieto, n.d). Formal attire is usually worn when going to church, office, parties, and social gatherings. Non-punctuality within the Hispanic community is acceptable. They are usually relaxed and therefore somebody may arrive late for a meeting without seeing it a problem.
The Roman Catholic religion is dominant among the Hispanics (Clutter & Nieto, n.d). In recent times, other religions have taken root in the Hispanic community. Indeed, the Catholic Church holds an important function in the family and community affairs of this community. They also observe the holidays and the days of saints in the Roman Catholic Church.
Their eating habits are different from those of other Americans. They eat a light meal for breakfast, and a heavy meal for lunch since it is regarded as the main meal of the day. They usually make it a custom to be at home to take the meal together. There is a common practice among the adults to rest after lunch. On the other hand, the evening meal comprises of a light snack usually coffee and sandwiches or rolls. The Hispanics in the United States have adopted a three-meal culture (Clutter & Nieto, n.d).
Assimilation
The Hispanic assimilation has not been very successful since most of the Hispanics strongly identify with the country of their origin, especially the first generation Hispanics. They still are strongly bonded to their countries and culture.They may refer to themselves firstly, as Americans but secondly, as Mexican, Peruvian, or Cubans (Clutter & Nieto, n.d). However, assimilation has been more successful on the third generation Hispanics than the first generation. Even in language acquisition, the first generation Hispanics has lagged behind as opposed to the third generation. Although the Hispanics have made great strides, they have lagged behind the other minorities in adopting English as an official language. The third generations Hispanics are the ones embracing English as an official language (Clutter & Nieto, n.d).
Conflicts with other Groups
Most of the conflicts arise between the indigenous communities and the Hispanic immigrants. How the indigenous people react to changes in demography and their interaction with the Hispanics will determine if there will be a conflict. In addition, the number of immigrant populations determines whether there will be a conflict. The 2.1 % Hispanic population of Florida is likely to have conflicts than New Mexico, which has a Hispanic population of over 40% (Holding, 2010). Furthermore, the behavior of the migrants can also lead to conflict. This is evident where the immigrants isolate themselves from the indigenous population. This can lead to them being singled out as a group and given a name. For example, Mexican was a term used to refer to the Hispanics.
Myths about Hispanics
There are several myths about Hispanics, although they are not entirely true. Indeed, most of the myths attributed to this section of population carry a negative connotation. One of the myths is that the Hispanics are immigrants. However, only about 30% of the Hispanic population consists of immigrants (Shear, 2007). The rest have been born in the US. Another myth is that Latinos and Hispanics are a single race (Shear, 2007). This is not true. The fact is that a Latino or Hispanic can be Asian, black or white. It is not a racial group.
Resolving the Conflicts
The myths can be eradicated by introducing laws and policies that discourage racial abuse, and also giving strict punishment to anyone caught referring to somebody racially, be it Hispanic, Latino, black or white. In addition, schools and other public institutions can take the challenge of educating their students and public on the minority groups and creating awareness about them. This will help in reducing conflicts that may arise between the minorities and indigenous communities. Moreover, social activities between various communities can be initiated to promote cohesiveness among them.
References
Clutter, W. A. & Nieto, D. R. (n.d). Understanding the Hispanics Culture. Retrieved from http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/5000/5237.html
Holding, R. (2010). What do you know about the United States? London: AuthorHouse
Shear, L. (2007). Myths and Truths Regarding Hispanics in America. Retrieved from http://voices.yahoo.com/myths-truths-regarding-hispanics-america-241193.html
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