The Realist Latina: Political Icons

02 December 2008

Political Icons

Here are a few of the most influential Latina/o political icons we've seen and read about! While there may be many, many more, these individuals shaped politics, civil rights, and human rights in America and should be recognized!

1. Nydia Velazquez (Puerto Rico) - The first Puerto Rican woman in Congress (1992); Representative for NY's 12th District

2. Herman Badillo (Puerto Rico) - The first Puerto Rican in Congress (1970); Representative for NY's 21st District

3. Jose M. Hernandez (US/Spain) - The first Latino in Congress (1882); Representative of Florida

4. Octavio A. Larrazolo (Mexico) - The first Latino Senator (1929); Senator of New Mexico

5. Antonio Villaraigoso (US/Mexico) - The first Chicano/Latino mayor of Los Angeles

6. Henry Cisneros (US/Mexico) - First Latino to be mayor of a major city, San Antonio, TX (1981); and served under Clinton as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (1993)

7. Bill Richardson (US/Mexico) - US Ambassador to the UN under Clinton; Former Secretary of Energy under Clinton; Current Governor of New Mexico; Major Democratic Party Nominee for President; and selected as possible Secretary of Commerce under Obama

8. Dolores Huerta (US/Mexico) - Chicana leader, organized the grape boycotts of the 1960s; cultural icon for workers' rights; co-founder of the United Farm Workers.

9. Cesar Chavez (US/Mexico) - Chicano civil rights leader; co-founder of the UFW.

10. Pedro Albizu Campos (Puerto Rico) - Puerto Rican Nationalist Party leader in the 1920-30s; promoter of Puerto Rican nationalism and progress.

11. Alberto Gonzalez (US/Mexico) - First Latino to be appointed US Attorney General under the Bush administration (2005)

12. Mel Martinez (Cuba) - Arrived in the US under "Operation Peter Pan" from Cuba at age 15; served as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under Bush (2001); first Cuban to be elected to US Senate (2004)

13. Loretta Sanchez (US/Mexico) - First set of sisters in Congress; Loretta and Linda serve simultaneously in Congress representing California's 47th and 39th districts respectively.

14. Linda Sanchez (US/Mexico) - First set of sisters in Congress; Loretta and Linda serve simultaneously in Congress representing California's 47th and 39th districts respectively.

15. Herman Gallegos, Dr. Ernesto Galarza, Dr. Julian Samora (US/Mexico) - Founders of the Southwest Council of La Raza in 1968; led to the National Council of La Raza, the largest civil rights Latino advocacy organization in the nation

16. Rosario Marin (Mexico) - 41st Treasurer of the US; highest ranking Latina in Bush administration (2001)

17. Henry B. Gonzalez (US/Mexico) - First Latino Representative from Texas to Congress from 1961-1998, known for his actions to end segregation, impeach Reagan and Bush Sr.

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Definitions

For a greater understanding of this blog and my outlook on fashion, culture, and politics, a few definitions are necessary:

Chicana/o: Various scholars have defined Chicano/as as Mexican-Americans who view themselves as non-Anglo, proud of their indigenous culture, and politically active. For the sake of this blog, Chicano/as will be used to mean any Americans with Mexican decent.

Chicanismo: This term will be used to denote the political activism, cultural identity, and the connection to the indigenous heritage of the Aztec Empire by Chicano/as.

Latina/o: While used in the US to describe anyone of Latin American decent or citizenship, for this blog, Latino/a will encompass anyone who defines themselves as Latino/a. It does not matter whether they are US citizens or Latin Americans or Spanish, but live and contribute to US popular culture, politics and fashion.

Hispanic: WILL NEVER BE USED IN THIS BLOG! This term was a term given to individuals of Latin American decent by the US government in an effort to classify these individuals as a monolithic group for the Census.

Gendered Spellings: In the Spanish language, most nouns must have a gendered spelling. In order to avoid misrepresenting anyone or any group, I will use the following: "Latina/o" or "Latin@" to mean both men and women within a particular group. When just talking about women, you will see "Latinas" or "Latina".

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that because of my own cultural identity, my knowledge of the histories of various Latin American groups in the US is limited. I apologize in advance if I have omitted important histories of my fellow herman@s. Feel free to add histories and individuals who you think fit within the contents of this blog.