This piece was written by Ruthie Flores, Senior Manager of The National Campaign's Latino Initiative. It is cross-posted on the Campaign's blog, Pregnant Pause. Hispanic Heritage Month has arrived with colorful strides to the nation's Capitol and throughout the U.S. What started off in 1968 as a one-week celebration has now been a 30-day
fiesta (from September 15 to October 15) since 1988. The first day of Hispanic Heritage Month marks the Independence Anniversary of five Central American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Being of Nicaraguan descent, I will wear my white & blue with Nica pride, and will celebrate
nuestra cultura with my brothers and sisters--and "honorary"
hermanos--through October 15...and beyond.
It's time to celebrate our accomplishments. It's time to realize our dreams. It's time to make our parents, abuelitos, and ancestors proud of their sacrifices. It's also time to debunk the myths that Latinos don't care about education, don't care about the future, and care more about starting a family at a young age than pursuing a professional career.
As I give presentations throughout the country on the best ways to prevent teen pregnancy in the Latino community, too many times have I heard fatalistic statements like: "But Latinas want to get pregnant...all they care about is starting a family early...there's nothing I can do." We can all do something. We can start off by believing in our Latino youth and encouraging them to set goals and chart a vision map. We can become mentors and make sure young Latinos know that they too can become a "wise Latina", an astronaut, and even the next President or Presidenta.
In the words of two Latino teens from
The Dolores Huerta Foundation in Central Valley California: "Don't be another number to the statistics."
Watch the short video and become a mentor to a young Latino so that you too can celebrate the accomplishments of your mentee during a future Hispanic Heritage Month.
¡Sí se puede!