but what about us latinos? we ve been here in this city, and we ve got every kind of latino. you want your puerto ricans? wepa. you want your cubans? dale! dominicans? que lo que tigre. colombianos? todo bien, todo bien. mexicanos? no manches, guey. and this is where i grew up, too. and when i was a kid, i don t know what the streets were paved with, but it damn sure as hell was not gold. but that didn t stop latinx new yorkers from making big contributions. basquiat, rita moreno puerto rican. cardi b dominican. supreme court justice sotomayor, nuyorican from the bx. even the very first non-indigenous person to live and work in the island of manhattan in the 1600s was juan rodriguez, a dominicano. mira eso, right from the start, we ve been here making this city great. now, i don t know what new york would be without latinos, but it sure as hell wouldn t smell as good, it wouldn t taste as good, and it definitely wouldn t sound as good. that s right, cause salsa music was in
Basquiat, Rita Moreno Puerto rican. Cardi bdominican. Supreme Court Justice sotomayor, nuyorican from the bx. Even the very first nonindigenous person to live and work in the island of manhattan in the 1600s was juan rodriguez, a dominicano. Mira eso, right from the start, weve been here making this city great. Now, i dont know what new york would be without latinos, but it sure as hell wouldnt smell as good, it wouldnt taste as good, and it definitely wouldnt sound as good. Thats right, cause salsa music was invented here in new york, thats right. [vocalizing along to salsa music] youre welcome. I wanna retrace my steps from queens, where i grew up, all the way to the Bright Lights of broadway and show you how latinos have contributed to the culture of the greatest city on earf. Thats right, i said earf. And you cant tell Latino Stories without plenty of good food, music, and dancing. So come on, lets go, lets go. Come on. [upbeat music] welcome to Jackson Heights. Thats right, this i
we re in the heart of el barrio, spanish harlem. - yes, sir, cause this is a historic place. this is where a majority of latin people came to new york city. - the place where salsa and music live. - for decades, people like dj agujita, a.k.a. raymond perez, have been keeping these salsa sounds alive. - this is culture. this is tradition. this event, this area, this neighborhood like i always say, this is not a place where you live. it s a place that lives in you. the people who have been here all of their lives, who migrated from puerto rico, like my father did in 1937, these are people who are not going anywhere. and this is their outlet. this is these are people who walk in here in walkers and wheelchairs, and when the music starts they re on their feet. - it s a little miracle. - it s a miracle. it s like you look for jesus. is jesus around? no, it s not jesus. - salsa.
- yes, sir, cause this is a historic place. this is where a majority of latin people came to new york city. - the place where salsa and music live. - for decades, people like dj agujita, a.k.a. raymond perez, have been keeping these salsa sounds alive. - this is culture. this is tradition. this event, this area, this neighborhood like i always say, this is not a place where you live. it s a place that lives in you. the people who have been here all of their lives, who migrated from puerto rico, like my father did in 1937, these are people who are not going anywhere. and this is their outlet. this is these are people who walk in here in walkers and wheelchairs, and when the music starts they re on their feet. - it s a little miracle. - it s a miracle. it s like you look for jesus. is jesus around? no, it s not jesus. - salsa. - salsa is around.
an idea. and you re proud of it. we re in the heart of east harlem. we re in the heart of el barrio, spanish harlem. - yes, sir, cause this is a historic place. this is where a majority of latin people came to new york city. - the place where salsa and music live. - for decades, people like dj agujita, a.k.a. raymond perez, have been keeping these salsa sounds alive. - this is culture. this is tradition. this event, this area, this neighborhood like i always say, this is not a place where you live. it s a place that lives in you. the people who have been here all of their lives, who migrated from puerto rico, like my father did in 1937, these are people who are not going anywhere. and this is their outlet. this is these are people who walk in here in walkers and wheelchairs, and when the music starts they re on their feet. - it s a little miracle. - it s a miracle.