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opinion
'Hispanic' not
a description
Being an editor for
the On-line Forty-Niner allows me to sift through many stories
concerning campus clubs, leaking roofs and campus crime.
Although the crimes
are disturbing, what makes me shake my head and frown are
the descriptions of the offenders.
A few weeks ago,
I edited the crime log, which appears every Thursday. I deleted
a word that police see as a description -- Hispanic.
A woman was seen
slashing tires in the parking structure. Her description included
her approximate height and weight, her hair color and length,
and the color of her skin -- 'light complexion,' according
to the report.
However, with such
a detailed description, the police still needed to include
the fact that she may have been Hispanic. Why? Wouldn't the
rest of the description be enough to catch her, considering
Hispanic people come in all colors? How exactly did the witnesses
know she was Hispanic, because she looks like she is? What
does Hispanic look like?
I know for a lot
of non-Latino Americans, the umbrella terms become overwhelming
because everybody is offended by one of them. For instance,
a person of Guatemalan descent will be offended by the term
Mexican, and a Mexican-American will get offended by the term
"Hispanic" because of its European origin.
Although using
an umbrella term like "Latino" makes it easier for
everyone else, it has major pitfalls, like using the term
"Hispanic" to describe someone's physical appearance.
Hispanic people
come from Mexico, Spain, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Cuba and
many other Latin American countries. With these countries
being so spread out, people that descend from them obviously
look very different. People from Spain tend to look white
with blue eyes and blond hair.
Many Latin Americans
and Cubans look black, including well-known television star
Alfonso Ribiero (Carlton from "The Fresh Prince of Bel
Air"), and there are the people from Mexico, some of
which have brown skin and dark hair. So, what does "Hispanic"
look like?
Hispanic does not
hold a single description, and to use it as such is irresponsible.
The flames of the already abundant fire of racism are still
blazing. Using generalizations such as these rob people of
the cultures they may be trying to be maintain in the midst
of our American society.
Christina L.
Esparza is a print journalism major at Cal State Long Beach
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