not Hispanic or Latino

[Nathan Bierma]

Here was my take.

Nathan Bierma
"On Language" columnist
Chicago Tribune
www.nbierma.com/language



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`Hispanic' or `Latino': What to call our largest minority?
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By Nathan Bierma
"On Language"
April 6, 2005

What is the proper term for an American of Spanish-speaking background? Is it
"Hispanic" or "Latino"?

"That can be answered only regionally," says Sandra Benedet, professor of
Spanish and Portuguese at Northwestern University. "The answer is very different
from California to Miami."

In Miami, "Latino" has not gained currency, Benedet says, and the most common
term is "Cuban" or "Mexican" followed by "Hispanic." In California, "Latino" is
most prevalent, "Hispanic" is frowned upon, and "Chicano" is preferred by some
Southern Californians of Mexican descent.

In Chicago, Benedet says, "Hispanic" is well-established, but "Latino" and
"Latina" seem to be gaining ground.

"I'm new to the Midwest, but what I've heard is that `Latino' and `Latina'
[are] increasingly gaining popularity, but `Hispanic' is still used quite a
bit," she says.

Although the popularity and connotations of "Hispanic" and "Latino" vary from
region to region, the entire United States is wrestling with the complicated
question of what to call its largest minority. "Hispanic," many critics say, has
problematic associations.

"For one thing, it's related to Spain," says Arlene Sanchez Walsh, who teaches
religion and Latin American and Latino Studies at DePaul University. She
observes that many Spanish speakers have no direct ties to Spain and are
reminded of Spanish colonialization when they hear "Hispanic."

"Secondly," Walsh adds, "it's a term created for the purpose of taking the
census. It's not a word that comes from the community. It's what the government
chose to call us."

Dropped as racial category

"Hispanic" gained currency in the United States when it was added to the census
form in 1970. Since then, it's been dropped as a racial category. In the 2000
Census, the majority of the 29 percent of Americans who identified themselves as
of "some other race" called themselves either "Hispanic" or "Latino."

That's another problem with the word "Hispanic," say critics. It's not an
ethnic term.

"Hispanic is not a race, and the term inadequately reflects the cultures of the
different regions that make up Latin America," says Vera Teixeira, senior
lecturer in Spanish and Portuguese at Northwestern. "The term `Hispanic'
attempts to blur all national and cultural identity."

That's because the Spanish language is the only common link among the diverse
groups who speak it, say defenders of "Hispanic."

"For better or worse, Latino Americanos [Spanish for "Latin Americans"], and
that includes those of us living in the United States, have a common root:
Spain," says Duard Bradshaw, president of the Hispanic National Bar Foundation.
"Even the indigenous people of Mexico, Guatemala, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia --
countries that have the largest indigenous populations -- cannot ignore the
Conquista, for it not only affected their original culture but gave them a
common thread in religion and language."

Bradshaw says he hears "Hispanic" and "Latino" used interchangeably or side by
side in the United States. "Ironically," he adds, "I have found in my travels to
Latin America that the term `Hispanic' is used much more frequently than it had
been even three or four years ago."

One term doesn't fit all

There's no ideal solution for Americans, Benedet says. "There's no one term
that can adequately define all the peoples and the cultures. It's really quite a
problem," she says.

"`Chicano' is too exclusive to Mexicans. `Hispanic' has too close a tie with
colonial roots," she says. Using "Mexican-American" or "Cuban-American," Benedet
adds, implies "you're not a culture in your own right."

Even "Latino" -- which rose to prominence in part as an anti-imperialist
alternative to "Hispanic" -- does not have a spotless history, Benedet says. She
notes that the French used it in their attempted conquest of Mexico in the 19th
Century. And "Latino" -- the Spanish equivalent of "Latin" -- has strong
associations with the Roman Empire and medieval Europe, where the Latin language
thrived. "Latino" also is gender exclusive, although it is often used as
shorthand for both males and females (who are "Latinas").

This dilemma makes "Hispanic" usable but limited, says Virginia Cueto, editor
of Hispanic Trends Magazine, based in Coral Gables, Fla.

"Personally, as a Cuban immigrant and U.S. citizen raised in this country from
the age of 9, I am not offended by either term, nor do I have a preference for
either, although if I absolutely had to choose, I would choose `Hispanic',"
Cueto says.

"When people ask me about my ancestry, I tell them I am Cubana. After all, that
is what they want to know," Cueto says. "That does not mean that I do not feel
one hundred percent American also. These are not mutually exclusive, and it is
important that non-Hispanics realize this."

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Write to Nathan Bierma at Onlanguage at gmail.com.

Copyright (c) 2005, Chicago Tribune

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