My father is an Air Force veteran. I value his service, but countless Latinos have sought equality through the military only to remain suspect citizens.
U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo’s quixotic mission to join the Congressional Hispanic Caucus went nowhere, but he provided a useful service. The Florida Republican’s quest laid bare what the ambiguous bureaucratic category of “Hispanic” is and is not.
“There has certainly been an arrest wave since the riots,” she said. She being Esperanza “hope” the female lead of Dennis Broe’s latest L.A. crime novel, with the same name as the heroine of the left-wing film Salt of the Earth, played by Rosaura Revueltas.
A sort of collective amnesia sets in as organizations begin to refer to the new category’s long history and develop narratives about the rich cultural basis of the classification. By then, the category is completely institutionalized, and the new classification is, like other classifications, assumed to have existed. Cristina Mora, Making Hispanics: How Activists, Bureaucrats, and Media Constructed a New American
Edward Roybal served his constituents as California's first Latino in Congress for 30 years, yet it was his work as a Los Angeles City Councilman that not only laid the foundation for his national career but also speaks to a number of issues affecting Angelenos today.