National Hispanic Heritage Month: USA

• 17 Sep 2020

Why in News

Recently, the National Hispanic Heritage Month began in the USA. The annual event is marked every year from 15^th September to 15^th October.

Key Points

• Aim:
  
  • The Hispanic Heritage Month honours the history, culture and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors hailed from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.
• Background:
  
  • The observation was started in 1968 by President Lyndon Johnson as Hispanic Heritage Week. It was extended to an entire month in 1988 by President Ronald Reagan, the year it was enacted into law.
• Hispanics in the USA:
  
  • Hispanic Americans are currently the largest minority group in the USA, making up a fifth of the total USA population. Majority of Hispanics are Mexican origin, followed by Puerto Rican.
  • The community is referred to as Hispanic, Latino or Latinx because the terms refer to a person’s origin or culture, without considering their race.
• Significance of the Hispanic Heritage Month:
  
  • The event begins in the middle of September, because of the significance 15^th September holds in Latin American history — being the Independence Day of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua from Spain in 1821.
  • The 16^th September and 18^th September being the Independence Days of Mexico and Chile, respectively from Spanish rule in 1810.
  • Another nation on the American continent, Belize, became independent from Great Britain on 21^th September 1981.
  • Columbus Day or Día de la Raza, a cultural celebration, also falls on 12^th October during the 30-day period.

Source: IE