González, a senior fellow at the Great Cities Institute at the University of Illinois Chicago and co-host of “Democracy Now!”, opened by emphasizing how Latino stories are essential to understanding the nation’s roots.
“There is a huge Latino population in the United States — over 68 million people today,” González said. “But there’s very little knowledge by most Americans as to how and why the Latino community of the United States developed because it’s a very complex community, more than 20 different nations and ethnic groups.”
Journalist and author Juan Gonzalez joins audiences in Georgetown and Wilmington to uncover the untold stories of the Latino community, spanning over 200 years of education, politics, and identity. (Johnny Perez-González/WHYY)
He explained that events like this help provide “some context, some facts and some understanding of the development and the contribution of the Latino community.”
Migration then and today
Speaking from his book and documentary “Harvest of Empire,” González discussed how the economic and political actions of the U.S. in Latin America led to migration waves that shaped the nation.
“You cannot really understand the presence of so many Latinos in the United States unless you first understand the role of the U.S. empire in Latin America,” he said. “The actions that our government took and that our business leaders and military leaders took in these various countries destabilized those countries and created a situation where people had to flee, and they fled to the United States.”
He added that Latino labor, both abroad and in the U.S., has long fueled the nation’s prosperity.
“These companies went to Latin America, employed Latino laborers, and the profits from their investments came to the U.S., but didn’t stay in Latin America,” González said. “So basically, Latinos both in the U.S. and in Latin America have a big part of the role in the prosperity that most Americans take for granted.”
Throughout the event, he also highlighted how Latino influence is embedded in the country’s geography and culture –– from state names like Florida, a Spanish term meaning “feast of the flowers”; Nevada, which is Spanish for “snow-covered”; in addition to Montana and California, which are both drawn from Spanish origins. He reminded attendees that Latino history stretches back more than 200 years, long before the modern immigration story began.
“Most Americans just think that Latinos are newcomers, that they just came recently or five or 10 or 15 years ago,” he said. “No, over 200 years ago there were Latino communities in this country and I think that’s important to understand.”
About 50 individuals joined the conversation on Latino history at one of Delaware250’s events. Sitting in the back corner, Carmen Guerrero shared that she feels proud to be Latina, Indigenous, and empowered to uplift her community. (Johnny Perez-González/WHYY)
