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Hispanic Heritage

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Hispanic/Latinx History Milestones: Timeline

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Hispanic History Milestones: Timeline

Early Spanish Explorers Reach America April 2, 1513Searching for the “Fountain of Youth,” Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon lands along the Florida coast, claiming the territory in the name of the Spanish crown. He would return in 1521 to establish a colony, but his party, attacked by Native Americans, were forced to retreat to […]

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HISTORY: Hispanic Heritage Month

Hispanic Heritage Month

Why the Date of Hispanic Heritage Month Is Important The timing of Hispanic Heritage Month coincides with the Independence Day celebrations of several Latin American nations. September 15 was chosen as the kickoff because it coincides with the Independence Day celebrations of five “Central American neighbors,” as Johnson called them—Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras […]

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DOUNIAMAG-PUERTORICO-ENTERTAINMENT-US-MUSIC-POVERTYA view of the neighbourhood of La Perla where the video "Despacito" was recorded in San Juan, on July 22, 2017. Something unusual is happening in La Perla, a poor barrio clinging to a steep hillside between Old San Juan and the sea where the video for the pop hit "Despacito" was filmed. / AFP PHOTO / Ricardo ARDUENGO (Photo credit should read RICARDO ARDUENGO/AFP via Getty Images)

Puerto Rico

Native Population Puerto Rico’s native Taíno population—whose hunter-gatherer ancestors settled the island more than 1,000 years before the Spanish arrived—called it Borinquén, and referred to themselves as boricua (a term that is still used today). During his second expedition to the Indies in 1493, Christopher Columbus returned several Taíno captives to Borinquén and claimed the […]

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Armed with clubs, pipes and bottles, this self-appointed posse of uniformed men was all set to settle the Zoot Suit War when the Navy Shore Patrol stepped in and broke it up.

Zoot Suit Riots

What Is a Zoot Suit? During the 1930s, dance halls were popular venues for socializing, swing dancing and easing the economic stress of the Great Depression. Nowhere was this more true than in the New York City neighborhood of Harlem, home of the famed Harlem Renaissance. Style-conscious Harlem dancers began wearing loose-fitting clothes that accentuated […]

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Miami Beach, City Hall, bilingual 'vote here' sign

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6 Groups That Advanced Latino Voting Rights

From registering voters to battling suppression, these organizations have helped grow and empower America’s Latino electorate.

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Portrait of Machito (at mic, right), with his Afro-Cuban mambo orchestra, including: José Mangual (bongos), Carlos Vidal Bolado (conga), Mario Bauzá (far left trumpeter), Ubaldo Nieto (timbales) and Graciella Grillo (front left), at the Glen Island Casino, New Rochelle, New York, c. July 1947

How Salsa Music Took Root in New York City

When Afro-Cuban mambo met big band jazz, musical sparks flew.

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July 18, 1946: Jose Rodriguez bringing 31 family members to Brooklyn, N.Y., where he has been working, to live together in a 10-room apartment he acquired. They're shown here arriving at Miami, Florida, from Isabella, Puerto Rico. The oldest member of the party is Jose's 73-year-old grandmother, Mrs. Francisca Rodriguez Cortes, and the youngest is his four-month-old daughter.

Why Puerto Rican Migration to the US Boomed After 1945

The US and Puerto Rican governments, looking to solve mutual problems, actively facilitated the exodus.

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Willie Velasquez

How Willie Velásquez Organized for Latino Voting Rights

He became especially known for his rallying cry, ‘Su voto es su voz’ (‘Your vote is your voice’).

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