HERITAGE IS CREATED EVERY DAY

The purpose of Hispanic Heritage Month is to celebrate the history, culture and contributions of Americans who trace their roots to Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America.

This is an annual recognition for the 53 million Latinos in the U.S. It is an opportunity for different parts of American society to dedicate warm words to the influence of Hispanics.

This year, the celebration takes place at a significant time for Latinos. The immigration debate has created a national conversation that is not exclusive to Latinos, but that is highly relevant for the Hispanic community because of its number of immigrants and the relevance of the Southern border.

This year, there was much talk about the contributions immigrants make to the private sector and the economy. Unfortunately, so far, those who rant and rave against immigrants were more successful.

At times, celebrations and realities are incongruent, like celebrating Central American culture—because of the independence of the nations in the region—after disparaging for weeks the minors who came to the U.S. to escape the violence in the region.

In these cases, it is easier to say good things about general matters than about people concretely.

However, this celebration groups all Latinos, who thanks to their numbers became a young, vibrant market. The purchasing power of tens of millions of people moves the U.S. economy. In the political realm, the numbers also represent a constantly growing electorate—a diverse population when it comes to geography and political vision.

The major challenge for Latinos today is to be good consumers, economically and politically. This involves taking an interest and being well-informed before buying a product, so that it really is what we need.

In politics, the same attention is required from voters as from buyers. The difference is that the “purchase” is made through voting.

Hispanic Heritage Month serves to remember the contributions of Latinos. We think that this heritage is built on a daily basis. What we create today gets added to what is already part of our heritage. The mission is to keep enriching a heritage that makes us feel proud of our origins