By Benard Bennett
Hispanic Heritage Week started off as a week in September 1968, when Congress authorized President Lyndon B. Johnson to proclaim the holiday during the week of September 15. In 1989 it was expanded by Congress to a month-long celebration. The dates were chosen due to the anniversaries for the independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days September 16 and 18, respectively.
Nielsen says that, with a 52 million in the U.S. population, Hispanics collectively have an impressive buying power of $1.2 trillion.
Here are some activities we put together for folks to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, while remaining indoors due to the colder weather patterns of the fall.
- Start or propose your book club to read influential hispanic authors, writers and poets
- Take friends to a local open mic night and bring hispanic poetry books to be recited multi-lingual
- If you have children, check out your local library to see if they have a reading time. If they do recommend influential hispanic authors, writers and poets that can be read from as outreach and education
- Visit a local hispanic art museum or any museum that promotes awareness about hispanic heritage by displaying visual artists of hispanic decent.
- Visit a local Latin based art gallery or one that promotes consciousness about latin american heritage by exhibiting visual artists of latin decent.
- Attend concerts, plays, symphonies, operas or any other performance artist expression based on the subject or ethnic hispanic heritage identity and paradigm
Out of the Box Gatherings
- Have a themed pumpkin carving party based on hispanic heritage themes or give people a phrase or person who they have to carve.
- Organize an arts and crafts party based on Dia de Los Muertos where sugar skulls, flowers, altars and pictures can all be used to create an experience.
- Use social media to build awareness by posting videos, pictures or articles about the importance of celebrating hispanic heritage and facts
This is by no means all the activities you can do to engage in Hispanic Heritage Month, tell us how you enjoy this holiday!