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which do you prefer?
Yep, I’m taking this one on. Pray for me.
A little background, my family is from Mexico, with Native American ancestry, and Spanish influence, fully assimilated with the language, religion, and appearance.
Do you Identify with Hispanic? Nationally, that is what our month from September 15th through October 15th is called, Hispanic Heritage month. However, I see companies changing it to Latino and Latinx to fit their demographic. The interchanging of those 3 identifiers is pretty much what you’ll see announced.
Although some of our population is divided on what they choose to identify as between these 3 words, there still are those who don’t give it a second thought.
This article is for those who are interested in a general breakdown to simply acknowledge the reason for the differences and why some of us are very passionate about it. Deeper into the article, the focus leans towards Mexican history.
Preparing the scene
I can almost bet mi gente would come for me if I didn’t mention the variations of what my culture wants to be identified as. In this day and age, someone would come for me. So I’m going to let you know now, I can almost guarantee I’m going to miss something important somewhere. You know why? Because I’m human. Just … like … you.
As I did a little research, this same institution kept on coming up, The Pew Research Center. I figured I was on the right track if all the articles I was referencing were listing stats from this center.
Here’s a map of Latin America for future reference:
That’s 33 countries plus Spain, 34. Countries, my friends. Not states, countries that are very different I might add when it comes to identifying with Hispanic origins or Latin origins and the heritage.
Call me Hispanic
Most who consider themselves Hispanic, identify with speaking Spanish or having an ancestorial tie to Spain from colonization between the 15th and 18th centuries.
So, all the countries that speak Spanish in the Latin Americas should consider themselves Hispanic. Not Brazil, Beliz, and Guyana. But include Spain.
For further clarification, Hispanic is an ethnicity, not a race. Which is important specifically when it comes to the census, and voting, and getting an accurate count of different groups of people in America.
In 1980, the government created the term “Hispanic” to officially identify all those from the Latin Americas and Spain. Prior to this, breakthrough, the U.S. went through several years of trial and error to create an identifier for that specific group of people. Like in the 1930s when they labeled all people from the Latin Americas, “Mexicans”. And 1975 when they finally reviewed the terms “colored” and “oriental”.
It still blows my mind at how many years it took the U.S. to accurately identify people from other parts of the world, especially the people neighboring the U.S., the very people they fought so hard to take the land from. To make identifying and quantifying a people that was not “American” a priority so early on. They were so quick to establish a caste system, practically sealing the fate of the Indigenous people and those who came to the U.S. post colonization as those who “are not”. What even was the purpose?
A long, long time ago … in my past life … an acquaintance in Chicano studies made a statement that changed how I wished to be identified forever. He made the bold statement that Hispanic was coined by colonizers from the meaning “His panic”. Blew my friggin’ mind.
I’ve been so set in this theory that I was surprised at how long it took to find that same theory online. But I found it. Someone else had a similar experience, “Back when I was in high school, a Latinx friend of mine said to me that the term “Hispanic” was actually code for “the white man’s panic.” “Get it?” he said. “His panic.”. No concrete resource to list here, however, the purpose and the undertones with which this term was created, speak for itself.
When in reality there’s a definitive language origin to this term that had nothing to do with a White man’s panic or a Spaniard man’s panic either way.
According to The Pew Research Center, I am Hispanic because my family is from Mexico, where Spanish is the official language. But I am NOT “his” panic. Or maybe I am.
Call me Latina
When it comes to the term “Latino” Wikipedia has a similar reference from the Pew Research Center, ‘ “Latino” includes all countries in Latin America (even Brazil) regardless of the fact that Portuguese is its only official language, but it does not include Spain. ‘
Oooookay. So Latino is all of the Latin Americas, sans Spain, because we are not talking about language here. Got it.
Of course, putting two and two together here, the term “Latino” comes directly from Latin America, being, the people of.
So, I am Latina because my parents came from Mexico, which is part of the Latin Americas.
Call me Latinx
Latinx is fairly new to the scene here when it comes to how our people want to be identified. It’s special because it is a term that we came up with instead of a term being given to us from constructs that were not a part of when it comes to our indigenous culture.
It was also created to include all genders and orientations with one word instead of having to write Latino/Latina/Latine.
Even Latinx though, is not accepted by all. Especially by the senior members of our culture as well as conservatives. The good thing is, just like everything else, they don’t have to use Latinx. I mean, we’ve been called worse names in our history: illegals, wetback, them, spics, Mexcan, beaner. While those may be “fun” for some, here’s a little education for you when you’re ready to address us appropriately.
From an educational standpoint, Latinx cannot be conjugated in Spanish. That’s kind of a big part of the purpose of the word, right? Something else to think about …
I am Latinx because my people came up with this term for us to be called, to include as many Latinos as possible with one word.
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE
Alright kids, what have we learned today?
In all seriousness, but also in an attempt to make this cultural history lesson fun, now we’re more familiar with Hispanic, Latino, and Latinx. There are a few more words with meaning I really need to include: Chicano, Pocho, Aztec, Mexica, white passing, and white presenting.
Call me Chicana
The origin of Chicano is unclear with several theories. Some believe it is a derivative of “Mexico” combining the indigenous language of Nahuatl with Spanish, including letters and sounds that were lost in translation throughout the years.
There are also records of a town called “Chicana” in a geographical map of “The Americas” created in 1562 by Spanish cartographer Diego Gutiérrez.
The term Chicano surfaced in America in the beginning of the 20th century as a derogatory term towards Mexicans uprooted from the Mexican Revolution. Initiating a form of classism amidst their own people. Mexicans who were working class, who were poor, who resisted assimilation, they were called Chicanos. By their own people, with an air of superiority.
Back in Mexico, the indigenous people also called the people from the “modern nation of Mexico” Mexicanos or Chicanos.
Much like other derogatory terms in America’s history, the Mexican Americans of this time took “Chicano” from divisive to reclaiming it pretty much with a “go to hell with your labels” attitude to both Americans and Mexicans. Here’s why …
By the 1940s, Mexican Americans took “Chicano” back as a form of a revolutionary pride, later birthing The Chicano Movement
which included Chicano Power and Brown Pride, associating it with the fight for civil liberties and social equity. And wow, did I just open up a new door of information.
The history, my guy, is vast.
I am Chicana because my family grew up poor. They worked hard for what they had to pass on a better life for their kids. I am Chicana because I push back on assimilation where I feel it takes away from my Mexican culture.
Call me Pocha
Another identifier we positively reframed was Pocho. Literally meaning rotten, discolored fruit in Spanish.
Pocho references a Latino who has moved from the Latin Americas. You are considered a Pocho if your Spanish is anything short of perfect down to the intonation. U.S. born children and Latinos who assimilate more with American values, are Pocho. A culturally Americanized Mexican.
I am Pocha because my parents came from Mexico. Because I was born in America and I’m a “no sabo kid” who still struggles with the Spanish language.
Call me Indigenous
When you hear the word Aztec, people usually associate it with one of the earliest civilizations in Mesoamerica.
From c. 8000 B.C. (hunter gatherer status) to the early 15th century, the area that is now Mexico City, saw a lot of revolution between the Indigenous groups.
History emphasizes much about the Aztec empire. However, in the timeline of events, there are a few more groups worth noting: Olmec, Teotihuacan, Toltec, Chichimecha/Aztec, and Tenochca.
Once the Spanish conquered the Aztecs, the land was called Mexica, what is known as Mexico City today.
How far back in our lineage do we trace back? With the love I have for my culture it’s been beautiful taking a deep dive in my history as far back as the Indigenous groups. Confusing, but so intriguing.
This is what makes the Hispanic/Latino/Latinx Heritage month title feel like such a blanket statement over such an in-depth history of so literally so many cultures. This is literally just the history of Mexicans.
Bonus: Passing and Presenting
Although this isn’t something you automatically think about when you think about what you want to be referred to as, this classification sneaks in there, especially within our own culture.
White passing is preferring to be identified as an American and assimilating into the American culture.
White presenting is appearing to be white but not denying your heritage in order to associate as white American.
I am white presenting. For a longer time than I’d like to admit, I was white passing. As I got older in life, I became more connected and prouder of my Mexican heritage. I can’t begin to tell you how big of an impact the state of the world changed me from passing to full on presenting.
From 2017, leading up to a pivotal 2020, I completely identified as white presenting. For 3 years I worked in a life changing slap in the face micro aggressive environment. The kicker, my superiors began getting more and more comfortable making their back handed “my best friend is Mexican” like comments after each offensive statement. With either a lingering stare to see if I’d say anything or a flippant embodiment of righteousness as they’d turn and walk away with their nose turned up.
I’m still processing this whirlwind of events. For the naiveite with which I observed the reoccurrence of the situations. For my benefit of the doubt outlook. For turning a silent blind eye. For letting it eat away at me for years until the therapist in my anxiety intensive outpatient program firmly but carefully guided me towards exiting that situation.
And how many of our people have stories similar to this? Current and in the past? I get goosebumps picturing the miles and miles of faces with the box of Colors of the World crayon hues, humbly standing in solidarity, exhausted from the tireless work they put in, ignoring their emotional exhaustion to fit in a society that continues to perpetuate our people as inadequate no matter what.
thoughts
I’ve specifically focused on these titles because I identify with them.
I am all of the above. Not too long ago I was white passing. Skipping through TSA coming back from a trip to Mexico with my cousins as they got stopped because of their darker skin. Same last name. Everyone fluent in English. And there I go with my Victoria’s Secret gear that said Pink on the butt, highlights in my hair, and colored eyes, prancing right on through.
I used to laugh about this moment. Yep, I look white. Bye guys, like nothing. I felt proud to fit in.
This post was really hard to write. It kept taking me down different rabbit holes of information that I really wanted to share. I tried to figure out how to include just the right amount of information and stay focused as I was consuming so much about my culture.
So, I encourage you, especially if you feel passionately about how you are culturally identified, to familiarize yourself, educate yourself in our history. It’s up to our generation to change the narrative on how our people, Hispanics, Latinos, Latinx, Chicanos, Pochos, Aztecs, and all the other blanket terms used to categorize us to stand together instead of divided. With American schools’ gatekeeping so much cultural history and literature, if we don’t keep our history alive, who will?