From September 15 to October 15, the United States honors the contributions that hispanics have made to our country by celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. The official celebration began in 1968, when Congress first passed a resolution to celebrate Hispanic Heritage on a national level as a week long event. This was changed in 1988, when President Ronald Reagan stretched the week to a month. September 15 is significant because it is the anniversary of independence for the Latin American countries of Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras. Also, Chile and Mexico celebrate their independence days on September 16th and September 18th. In addition, Columbus Day or Día de la Raza, which is October 12th, falls within this month.

Hispanic people were among the earliest European settlers in Northern America, Hispanic Americans have roots that stretch to Europe, Africa, and South America. Today, Hispanics make up 15 percent of our nation’s total population, about 46.9 million live in the United States (as of July 1, 2008), making people of Latin American origin the nation’s largest minority. This commemorative month honors the influence of Hispanics in all regions of U.S. society, including art, culture, science, politics, and the economy. Hispanic Americans have played an important part in America’s history, its values, and culture.They include Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, actresses Selena Gomez and America Ferrera, and authors Isabel Allende and Julia Alvarez. According to the U.S. Census, more than 63,000 Latin American people were on active duty in the Armed Forces.

Whether you realize it or not, Hispanic influence is all around us. Harrisonburg High School has a large and established Hispanic community, that brings a great dose of diversity to the school. This month, by learning about latino culture, you might find that you have more things in common than you had previously thought. All in all, it is for these reasons that we should honor the strong and vibrant Hispanic culture that has contributed to so much of our community.