Many Hispanic Heritage Month events across the United States have been cancelled or postponed due to recent immigration fears.
Hispanic Heritage Month is a month of opportunity where the people in the United States are given the chance to learn and celebrate the contributions of Hispanic and Latin cultures. According to CBS, several major events in Chicago have been cancelled or postponed due to immigration fears. Hispanic Heritage Festival of the Carolinas, Hispanic Heritage Fest in Kenner, Louisiana and FIESTA Indianapolis all were cancelled because of immigration tensions.
In Hattiesburg, the MS Latinx Art Association hosted their own Hispanic Heritage Month event. They had local musicians perform Latino inspired music. They played in different areas in Hattiesburg such as Lucky Rabbit, City Hall Fountain and Creators Plaza.
“We hired some musicians to come and play in different locations in town,” MS Latinx Art Association Vice President Jacqueline Gonzalez Wooton said. “They were going to play music that was Latino inspired.”
Despite the immigration issues, Wooton said it is important to value the Latino community in Hattiesburg by expressing and celebrating the culture. She explained it is more important now than ever to value and celebrate Hispanic and Latino culture.
“You need to be out there expressing what you know, what your culture is,” Wooton said. “We need other people to be able to help, so yes now we think now more than ever we need to continue doing that.”
Grad student Areli Orozco sees Hispanic Heritage Month as a way to recognize her and her family’s achievements. She felt as if she accomplished the “American Dream” that her parents dreamed of for their children.
“I have achieved what my parents’ idea of the American Dream was,” Orozco said. “So, it’s a moment to recognize their achievements during this time.”
Orozco is not from Mississippi and noticed the Latino population is not as prominent. She is grateful that there was an event in Hattiesburg that showed appreciation towards the Hispanic and Latino community.
Hispanic Heritage Month started off as a week-long recognition in 1968 under President Lyndon Johnson to recognize the contributions of Hispanic-Americans. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed into law to make the observance into a 30-day period starting on Sept. 15 through Oct. 15. It begins on Sept. 15 because many Central American nations such as Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua celebrate their independence day with Mexico following on Sept. 16.
For future events with the MS Latinx Art Association students can visit, https://mslatinxart.square.site/muertos
