In case you’re not all tuckered out from the numerous Hispanic Heritage month events you have been attending and plan on going to even more, here are few ideas for conversation starters.
• According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Services, there are 62.1 million Hispanics living in this country. That’s about 19% of the U.S. population.
• Within the country’s Hispanic population (considered to be of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Central or South American or other Spanish culture) Mexicans are the largest group, coming in at about 62% of that 62 million figure.
• In California 39.4% of the state’s 39.24 million people are Hispanic.
• Thirty-five percent of San Diego county’s three million-plus residents consider themselves Hispanic.
• An estimated 65% of the 55,550 people who live in National City are in the Hispanic category. In Chula Vista 60.2 percent of the 279,170 people who live there are Hispanic, according to the United States Census.
• Hispanics are everywhere.
• In June the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the Hispanic unemployment rate was down to 4%.
And yet:
• The Office of Minority Services reports that with regard to health, “Hispanics have the highest uninsured rates of any ethnic or racial group within the United States.”
• Within the first five months of the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant number of cases was within the Hispanic community, according to the American Heart Association. Of the 600,000 cases in which ethnicity and racial information was available, one-third of those cases between January and May 2020 were among Hispanics.
• Generally, Hispanics have less access to preventative healthcare to address other health concerns such as high blood pressure and diabetes, than their non-Hispanic counterparts.
And yet:
• Hispanics prevail
So, when marking the hard won accomplishments and contributions of Hispanics keep in mind the perseverance and determination needed to get only this far.
