People must think I am the least Hispanic Latino ever.
I speak English 24/7. I despise spicy food. Music like merengue and salsa gives me a headache, and you will never see me willingly playing soccer.
Honestly, there were times in my life — even before I moved to the U.S. — when I thought the genetic Sorting Hat had mistakenly placed me in the Hispanic community.
And I have the media to blame for that.
With Hispanic Heritage Month taking place Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, advertising agencies and news organizations are taking out their box full of stereotypes to “celebrate Hispanic culture.”
As nice as it is that these organizations recognize some of our customs, they fail to paint the community in a realistic light.
The Hispanic community is composed of any person who was born or is a descendant of someone born in any Spanish-speaking country in the world. We’re not just Mexicans and Cubans.
I understand American society is mostly exposed to these countries’ customs, but the stereotype-filled portrayal of Latinos in the media is what’s keeping the “everything south of the border is Mexico” mentality alive. With the number of Hispanic Americans growing every year, it is imperative that Hispanic culture is portrayed accurately.
We’ve all had similar experiences assimilating to American culture, and we share the same language, but we are not the same.
To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrities like Perez Hilton and Rosario Dawson — as well as other people not in the public eye — took to social media to spread the #WhatLatinoMeansToMe message.
In these messages, the person revealed what being a part of the Hispanic community means to them. Whether it’s the food, the sense of community or the diversity, these individuals accurately represented themselves on a social platform, which is exactly what news organizations should be doing.
One of the things I miss most about Venezuela is the importance of family, a value that is also prevalent in Louisiana culture. On Sundays back then, my family would gather at my grandma’s house and have lunch together.
The idea of family as the most important part of life is my favorite part of Hispanic culture.
I believe this is the reason why, despite how different we may be, people in the Hispanic community tend to stick together.
We are raised to prioritize family over anything else. If circumstance separates us from them, we rely on others who share our values, and they become our second family.
American society takes Latinos’ tendency to stay together as a sign that we are all the same, which is how they get away with having white guys in sombreros reporting on holidays like Cinco De Mayo and calling it a celebration of Hispanic culture.
The Hispanic community consists of a diverse group of cultures tied together by similar values and experiences that make us a family.
The media will properly celebrate our heritage when they let go of stereotypes and embrace the diversity of our culture.
I may not be the stereotypical Latino the media want me to be, but that doesn’t make me any less Hispanic; it just makes me an individual within the community.
So, what does Latino mean to me?
It’s not about what music, food or sports we like. It’s not about what language we speak regularly or how we spend our time.
It’s about who we are.
Jose Bastidas is a 21-year-old mass communication senior from Caracas, Venezuela. You can reach him on Twitter @jabastidas.