Hispanic American Diversity

Hispanic American Diversity

Cultural Diversity 2008

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Cuban Americans

Cuban Americans make up the third largest group of Hispanic Americans. Cuban Americans mainly live in the state of Florida arriving after the Cuban Revolution of 1959. The majority of the Cuban Americans were well educated and from upper and middle classes. The Cuban American community has been economically successful and has large political influence. Most Cuban Americans are educated, are committed politically and care very much about what happens in their homeland. Cuban Americans are so close to their homeland they are often asked about events and problems occurring in their native homeland. Cuban Americans are another Spanish speaking group, but they also have adapted to live in the United States and speak English as well. The Cuban Americans are close when it comes to family. They often live in close tight nit communities and are always looking out for one anther. Cuban Americans are also known for financially helping out other family members still in Cuba. (2008, 1997-2008)

Puerto Rican Americans

Puerto Rican Americans are the second largest subgroup of the Hispanic Americans. The majority of Puerto Rican Americans live in New York and New Jersey.

“A portion of Puerto Ricans living in the United States are former jÐ"­baros (rural folk) who migrated from the countryside of Puerto Rico in the 1960s. Because Puerto Rico is a U.S. commonwealth and Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, they are eligible for many federal benefits not available to other groups. However, many people feel that welfare programs have trapped many poor Puerto Ricans in a cycle of poverty. Others maintain that discrimination in employment and educationвЂ"not welfareвЂ"is the major forces that have kept some Puerto Ricans in poverty” (2008, 1997-2008) Puerto Rican Americans are another Hispanic Group that the languages are English and Spanish. The largest number of Puerto Rican Americans also primarily speaks English in everyday business and Spanish at home. Unlike Cuban Americans Puerto Rican Americans do not have strong ties to their native homes. Most Puerto Rican Americans are immigrants or descendents of immigrants coming to the United States looking for a better way of life.

Dominican Americans

Dominican Americans main religious affiliation is Roman Catholic. “They are involved in the cult of the saints and the cult of the national virgins, Altagracia and Mercedes, which are as strong symbol of the Dominican identity as the Dominican Flag.” The heart of the Dominican culture is music. The Merenque and Bachata as well as hip hop and Reggae ton are popular music among Dominican Americans. (2008, 1997-2008)

The Dominican culture is well known for its foods which include white rice, yucca, mango, beef, plantains, beans and sancocho. One of the largest parades in New York City is from the Dominican American culture. It’s the Dominican Day Parade. One o the Dominicans favorite well known favorite past times is baseball. The Dominican Americans have contributed a lot to the political aspects of New York. Another interesting fact is a lot of New York’s rappers are Dominican descent or part Dominican. The Dominican Americans have seemingly made the largest amount of adaptations to American ways of life. They have a large numbers in Politics, at least two dozen Dominican Americans are elected as councilmember’s, county legislators, and state legislatures throughout the United States There are also well known Dominican Americans in sports like the NFL and NBA both have players from the Dominican decent, the news, the fashion industry are just a few more places the Dominicans have become well known. Even though the Dominican Americans are doing so well here in the United States most dream about going home to the island and do poorly in the United States. (Dominican Americans, 2008)

Mexican Americans

The language of most Mexican Americans is Spanish. It is widely used a today is even in media, printed materials, electronics such as toys as well as some small businesses cater to Spanish speaking communities. Spanish is also taught in the majority of high schools as a second language. Mexican Americans often choose to speak English in society but choose to speak Spanish at home. The majority of today’s Mexican Americans speak English. The Spanish spoken by Mexican Americans varies to some extent depending on the rural or urban identity of the speaker, his/her economic standing, length of time in the United States, and level of education. (MarÐ"­n, 2006)

Mexican Americans are the largest group of Hispanic Americans in the U.S. In the past they often visited a folk healer for sickness and ailments. Today’s Mexican Americans visit doctors and clinics and modern medical facilities. The two major holidays that Mexican Americans celebrate are Cinco de Mayo and Mexican Independence day.

The largest portions of Mexican Americans are of the Catholic faith. They celebrate many symbolic celebrations such as the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12th. Ceremonies and rituals in recognition of events related to the birth and death of Jesus Christ are an essential part of the religious calendar of many Mexican Americans .There also is a very small number of Mexican Americans that are of the Protestant and Pentecostal groups.

The majority of Mexican Americans are Democrats. As Democrats they have played a significant role in several elections such as John F. Kennedy in 1960, Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, and in 1968 Herbert Humphrey. There are several thousands of