Flag Abuse

Latino cultures are as Distinct, Diverse and Different as ants http://www.antstuff.net/html/species_of_... (Cubans being fire ants of which there are 280 different species).

Latinos don’t share the same “language,” heritage, values, history, stories, customs or culinary traditions. The reason you might think we do is because we’ve been lumped into the category of “Latino” or “Hispanic” which strips uniqueness from our cultures.

A few months ago an Anglo author/professor emailed me to let me know she was preparing tacos, homemade guacamole, chips and salsa for her book club. She said, "We're reading Down to the Bone and want the full Cuban experience!" I gently explained that what she mentioned was Mexican food and the only Latinos who grow up eating Mexican fare are Mexican. "Don't feel embarrassed," I said. "Most of my Latino and Chicano friends had never heard of Ropa Vieja, Moros y Christianos, Boliche or Ajiaco until they met moi."
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/600...

The root of our mother tongue is Spanish. Latinos understand all Spanish-speaking folks, but sometimes we don't fully comprehend parts the other's dialect just as you may not completely understand someone speaking Shakespearean or British English.

Our different dialects form a crucial part of our identity.

Spanish spoken in Argentina and Uruguay is influenced by Italians who settled there in the early nineteenth century thus they sound massively different from other Spanish speaking cultures (my ex was Argentinean and we spent a great deal of time laughing after explaining what we meant by this or that).

Latinos don't use the same territorial colloquialisms or standard dialect in our nineteen countries (not including Puerto Rico). South American Spanish is different from Caribbean Spanish (we drop our S's). Latinos don’t understand Catalan Spanish spoken by Catalan folks in Cataluña. Some of us have Indian or African blood while white Latino ancestry (blonde hair and blue eyes included) can be linked not only to Spain, but to England, Scotland and so forth. (Oh, and our accents differ, too!)

Since our cultures and traditions are as diverse as the Europeans (Germans, Italians, Spaniards and French aren’t lumped in one “European” category) the literary world should consider making distinctions between us. A German would never say something as cliché as, “I’m European. All Europeans Eat wurst and drink beer!” http://www.tulane.edu/~rouxbee/kids04/ge... (She/he is German first and then European.)

180--(at least it’s not a 360!)

I still can’t find many culturally authentic Latina/o YA and middle grade novels with true diversity from big publishers and there are barely any with LGBTQ characters (many kids come out in middle grade).

“Culturally Authentic” means:

* A Bilingual author born in Latin America and raised in a Hispanic US community intimately knows what she/he is writing about because she/he has lived, breathed and experienced it to the fullest.

* A US-born author with Hispanic parents or grandparents doesn't speak Spanish but grew up in a Latino community, feels "Latino," has Latino friends and understands the dialect.

* A U.S.-born author with Hispanic heritage who may not speak Spanish or Spanglish. She/he understands, respects and loves the culture, has lived in a Hispanic community, feels Latino and has Latino friends. (Included are Nuyoricans and Chicanos.)

Authentic does not mean:

* Caucasian authors (Marcy SingaLittleTune or Sam GetMeOuttaHere)using pen last names such as Garcia and Rodriguez.

* Authors with Spanish last names with no clue what it means to be Latina/o (the only words they know in Spanish are “No” and “Sí Señora”) and have never lived in a Latino community or heard family stories but give Spanish names to characters to fill diversity quotas.

This post isn’t about cultural pride. Some journal reviewers and publishers’ book lists refer to “Latino” or "Hispanic" categories. This will lead children to believe we are all the same and thus why I hope the publishing world considers announcing what kind of Latino culture is being depicted in contents, such as:

Cuban-American (Cubiche)
Puerto Rican (Nuyorican/Boriqua)
Chilean-American
Nicaraguan-American
Colombian-American
Dominican-American
Mexican-American/Chicano (two-thirds of Latinos in the US are Mexican and most children's books are Mexican thus why most think all our customs and traditions are Mexican.)
And so on…

The words “Latino” and “Hispanic” when talking about books don't allow children and young adults to understand or learn about the rich diversity in our massively different cultures (which can transfer into desire to learn geography and history).

It’s important for kids to connect with their heritage through literature but we have no authentic MG book and only one or two YA books that authentically show our varied and unique cultures. Latino kids and teens in the US need to feel pride in their heritage and every kid in our country deserves to be exposed to diversity in literature thus I strongly feel publishers shouldn't consider Latino books stricly for a "niche" audience and publish authenic Latino authors.

Ignoring critical distinctions lump us in one category and it will be easier for kids and teens to see us as one-dimensional and to judge us as ONE group.

When I came from Cuba the only Americanito blonde, blue-eyed boy in our Cuban barrio called our neighbors and me, SPICS! He’d speed his bike along the sidewalk, spit, and boom, “You SPICS!”

Note: The word SPIC probably originated from the way some Latinos say “speak.” My mom never learned English because there is no need for it in Miami (a Latin American “country”). She and our neighbors always said, “Me no espiky dee Engli.” Espiki = SPIC?

Well, yes. I’m a SPIC and proud!

360--TIDBITS:

If you’re still interested and aren’t snoozing http://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Art... here’s a mini Latino 101 course:

“Latin” doesn't mean "Latino." Latin has to do with romance languages such as Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, French, etc. http://www.referencecenter.com/ref/refer... .

"Spanish" is our mother tongue/language. The only people on earth who call themselves “Spanish” are born in Spain.

"Hispanic" was coined by the government to lump us together which in some ways is a powerful political tool to enhance our visibility. Normally, when folks say, "I'm Hispanic," they're usually whiter and better educated and don't like to be called "Latino."

“Latino” in the US was once related to the working-class and a word incorporated by Hollywood, the media, and publishers, to glamorize actors and authors. Once Latino’s climb the ladder of success they tend to call themselves "Hispanic." For accurate representation of these words, check out: http://www.elboricua.com/latino_hispanic...

In the following interview I talk more about Latino cultures and Miami's LGBTQ Cuban subculture: http://www.chasingray.com/archives/2008/...

And for the record, I'm a Cuban-American LATINA!