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Maybe just because "Spanish" is two syllables, and "Latino" and "Hispanic" are both three syllables.
I'm white, said the word "Latino" to a Colombian guy, and he said "Spanish" two sentences later. I concluded that a lot of them prefer Spanish.
Sorry, I'm from the country, and I haven't talked to many Latino people specifically about their race before. :-/
Really don't think that those who call themselves "Spanish" really make a huge production as to why.
In fact ironically it might be Latinos who are English dominant, who use that description.
There is a 4th generation of people who are of Puerto Rican descent. They don't speak Spanish, and they don't look either black and white, and so find a casual way to call themselves.
Just as most people of African descent refer to themselves as "black" even though their skin color is actually brown.
Really don't think that those who call themselves "Spanish" really make a huge production as to why.
In fact ironically it might be Latinos who are English dominant, who use that description.
There is a 4th generation of people who are of Puerto Rican descent. They don't speak Spanish, and they don't look either black and white, and so find a casual way to call themselves.
Just as most people of African descent refer to themselves as "black" even though their skin color is actually brown.
I think most likely, non-Latinos incorrectly referred to them as Spanish when they arrived in New York, which is why it became common for Latinos in NY to refer to themselves as "Spanish".
Referring to people as "white" and "black" is also silly, but that's a whole 'nother topic.
There is a 4th generation of people who are of Puerto Rican descent. They don't speak Spanish, and they don't look either black and white, and so find a casual way to call themselves.
According a dictionary I purchased that was a Spanish dictionary written in Spain, Latino is a white person from any Latin language country. This isn't what people in the US mean when they use by Latino.
Words do not have any one meaning, and to different people from different regions or countries they can mean very different things.
If the Mexican person calls himself Spanish and identifies as such, who are you to argue with him? Who are you to tell these people what these terms mean?
And a Jamaican or Irish might identify as English. That's up for the individual person to decide. There clearly is a historical connection, and people from a number of former British colonies can easily get citizenship in the UK.
So with that understanding, white Spaniards could easily refer to themselves as Latino if that was the culture they wanted to identify with, right?
Quote:
Originally Posted by NyWriterdude
NYC and Northeastern Puerto Ricans commonly called themselves Spanish. Latino in broad usage came out of the various political movements in California and it spread through academia.
If people identify themselves as Spanish that is their right and perogative. If someone else identifies themselves as Latino that is right too.
If people choose to call themselves Spanish - regardless of accuracy - why does it matter? People can self identify as they wish. Spaniards consider themselves Europeans - Castellano, Catalan, etc. They make clear the distinction between them and people from the countries they colonized. In the old casta system, there was a even difference between White criollos and peninsulares. For most of us, particularly in the northeast, "Spanish" is usually associated with Dominicans and Puerto Ricans and maybe Mexicans (but I'm not sure as I didn't hang out with Mexicans when I lived in NYC).
Here in Texas, my Mexican-American husband has always identified as "Hispanic", and if one wants to get specific "Mexican-American". He is mestizo as are most Mexicans. No one uses the term "Spanish" here..maybe it's because most people associate all spanish speakers with being Mexican? who knows. people do use "mexican" even if you come from Honduras.
You are also inferring that Spanish Europeans could easily refer to themselves as Latino if they chose to in order to fit in. Would you find this Acceptable or is there some kind of a double standard because they don't have any indigenous blood and they are only "Latin" in the non-American sense of the word.
People on the west coast say Hispanic because most Latinos there are Mexican, and Mexico became independent from Spain very early on.
Mexico is also very different culture from the Caribbean and has been a discrete nation for thousands of years while I believe the Taino Indians had a smaller linguistic and cultural influence on Cuba and Puerto Rico.
All of these labels are problematic. I've been trying to make sense of the "African American" label. It makes absolutely no sense, since white Americans are not referred to as "European Americans."
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