By Madeleine Morales ’18, Lifestyle Editor

People often ask me, “So you are Mexican, right?” Wrong. The stereotypes that frame the culture of Latino or Hispano-Americans are quite hurtful and not comprehensive of the culture. Many mistakes are assumptions based on ignorance and misunderstanding of the subject.

The word Latino is broad: it encompassing all people who identify as native of Latin America, which includes all of South America, Central America, and Caribbean Islands that are Spanish-speaking. However, the term “Spanish” is used to refer to those from Spain and the Iberian Peninsula, excluding countries such as Brazil. Spanish is the language, while Hispanic is the term to identify people. Though these terms are straightforward, people cannot comprehend them and tend to mix the identifiers up. Personally, I am not upset by the accidental switch of someone calling me Hispanic versus Latina, but many people sensitive to the misuse of terms because “Hispanic” is a very narrow identifier and falsely alludes that Latinos descend from the people of Spain. This can be offensive to some because they descended from the indigenous people of their country rather than the conquistadors that defeated them. Many people prefer to identify by their country rather than the general term: she is Columbian or he is Dominican.

Another issue is people accusing Latinos or Hispanics of “not looking Latino” or “acting too white.” Those born in the United States can still identify as Latino or Hispanic because their heritage is from these countries and they bring their culture to the U.S. Growing up with a Caucasian mother and a Latino father, I am exposed to two different cultures, but that does not make me any less of one than the other. Not all Latinos can speak Spanish, mow your lawn, or cook terrifically; the stereotypes are simply false. Many people tell you what you are, causing internal conflict about identity. There is no checklist one must fill out with characteristics they must have in order to claim that they are from one culture or another, it just is.