Every culture comes with its own set of stereotypes--and Latinos are no exception. There are plenty of common misconceptions out there about the Latino population in the US, which range from slightly off-base to totally false. So in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we thought we'd clarify a few facts.
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1. All Latinos speak Spanish. The majority do, but not all! Approximately 73 percent of Latinos ages 5 and older speak Spanish at home. Spanish is the second-most spoken language in the United States.
2. Latinos refuse to speak English. Nope, 68 percent of Latinos from the speak English very well.
3. The terms "Hispanic" and "Latino" only covers one country of origin. These umbrella terms actually cover a wide variety of backgrounds and cultures. And interestingly, half (51 percent) of the community prefers to idenfity themselves with their family's country of origin (such as "Cuban," "Mexican," etc.) over using "Hispanic" or "Latino."
4. All immigrants are Latinos. According to the Pew Research Center estimate based on U.S. government data, 11.2 million unauthorized immigrants were living in the United States in 2012. Latinos make up three-quarters of them.
5. Latinos don't go to college. According to the Pew Research Center, 49 percent of young Latino high-school graduates were enrolled in college in 2012, surpassing the rate for white (47 percent) and black (45 percent) high-school grads.
6. All Latinos are Democrats. The vast majority of Hispanics voted for the Democratic party in 2012, but 27 percent also voted Republican.
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