I’m a sixteen year-old Mexican- I might be inexperienced and I still have a lot to get educated on- and in my short period of life, I’ve seen how some people think being a Latinx makes you less, or not worthy of some stuff. I’ve seen how ignorant people make insulting and annoying stereotypes about the countries that compose Latin America. But instead of complaining of everything that I’m not, I want to promote everything that I am and that I love, everything that being a Latina (in my opinion and personal experience) means.
Nothing anyone says is ever going to not make me proud of who I am and where I come from.
Being Latina means I am diverse, and I’m proud to share that label with people from other countries such as Argentina, Brazil and Colombia, etc (just to name a few). I come from a long heritage of family values and cultural traditions that have thankfully remained in a society that is slowly becoming more and more materialistic. I’m proud of the brown color of my skin and of my thick pronunciation when I speak the English language; I understand that it is not something to be ashamed of, on the contrary, it is a reminder that I’m an intelligent bilingual woman, and that I’m able to communicate with people in more than one language. I love my rich culture of delicious food, beautiful traditional dancing, energetic parties and diverse music. I love that I live in a warm country, and I’m not talking only about the weather, but Latinxs are known for being super affective; we feel, we love, we express, we celebrate, and yes, we get mad. We are able to get the good out of every situation, and in many cases that means creating memes. We solve things: there’s not any injury that can’t have a home remedy. I’m proud of my fellow Latinx people that have made a name for themselves and are currently really successful. I love that I can share the Latina label with legends like Frida Kahlo and Selena Quintanilla. I love that we are hard workers, we don’t give up easily. I love the unity among our people. I’m proud of the breathtaking landscapes and amazing man-made wonders that have tons of history behind them.
I have tons of stuff that I love about my ethnicity left unsaid, but I think I got my point across. I will continue spreading my love for my heritage and I hope I encouraged someone to do the same.
