This book brings to life Hispanic individuals who have contributed greatly to the development and growth of the American society and are considered role models for the new generations of Latinos growing up in the USA. They are Alma Flor Ada, Judith Francisca Baca, Sandra Cisneros, Jaime Escalante, Gloria Estefan, Charles Patrick García, Carolina Herrera, Mario Kreutzberger "Don Francisco," Rodolfo Llinás, Juan Pablo Montoya, Ellen Ochoa, Edward James Olmos, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and Sonia Sotomayor.

A sweeping history of the Latino experience in the United States. The first new edition in ten years of this important study of Latinos in U.S. history, Harvest of Empire spans five centuries—from the European colonization of the Americas to through the 2020 election. Latinos are now the largest minority group in the United States, and their impact on American culture and politics is greater than ever. With family portraits of real-life immigrant Latino pioneers, as well as accounts of the events and conditions that compelled them to leave their homelands, Gonzalez highlights the complexity of a segment of the American population that is often discussed but frequently misrepresented. This landmark history is required reading for anyone wishing to understand the history and legacy of this influential and diverse group.

Presents a history of Hispanics in the United States as well as short biographies of fourteen prominent Hispanics including author Alma Flor Ada, teacher Jaime Escalante, astronaut Ellen Ochoa, actor Edward James Olmos, and others.

This book brings to life Hispanic individuals who have contributed greatly to the development and growth of the American society and are considered role models for the new generations of Latinos growing up in the USA. They are Alma Flor Ada, Judith Francisca Baca, Sandra Cisneros, Jaime Escalante, Gloria Estefan, Charles Patrick García, Carolina Herrera, Mario Kreutzberger "Don Francisco," Rodolfo Llinás, Juan Pablo Montoya, Ellen Ochoa, Edward James Olmos, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and Sonia Sotomayor.

How did Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, and Cubans become known as “Hispanics” and “Latinos” in the United States? How did several distinct cultures and nationalities become portrayed as one? Cristina Mora answers both these questions and details the scope of this phenomenon in Making Hispanics. She uses an organizational lens and traces how activists, bureaucrats, and media executives in the 1970s and '80s created a new identity category—and by doing so, permanently changed the racial and political landscape of the nation. Some argue that these cultures are fundamentally similar and that the Spanish language is a natural basis for a unified Hispanic identity. But Mora shows very clearly that the idea of ethnic grouping was historically constructed and institutionalized in the United States. During the 1960 census, reports classified Latin American immigrants as “white,” grouping them with European Americans. Not only was this decision controversial, but also Latino activists claimed that this classification hindered their ability to portray their constituents as underrepresented minorities. Therefore, they called for a separate classification: Hispanic. Once these populations could be quantified, businesses saw opportunities and the media responded. Spanish-language television began to expand its reach to serve the now large, and newly unified, Hispanic community with news and entertainment programming. Through archival research, oral histories, and interviews, Mora reveals the broad, national-level process that led to the emergence of Hispanicity in America.

Named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR An NPR Best Book of the Year, exploring the impact of Latinos’ new collective racial identity on the way Americans understand race, with a new afterword by the author Who are Latinos and where do they fit in America’s racial order? In this “timely and important examination of Latinx identity” (Ms.), Laura E. Gómez, a leading critical race scholar, argues that it is only recently that Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Dominicans, Central Americans, and others are seeing themselves (and being seen by others) under the banner of a cohesive racial identity. And the catalyst for this emergent identity, she argues, has been the ferocity of anti-Latino racism. In what Booklist calls “an incisive study of history, complex interrogation of racial construction, and sophisticated legal argument,” Gómez “packs a knockout punch” (Publishers Weekly), illuminating for readers the fascinating race-making, unmaking, and re-making processes that Latinos have undergone over time, indelibly changing the way race functions in this country. Building on the “insightful and well-researched” (Kirkus Reviews) material of the original, the paperback features a new afterword in which the author analyzes results of the 2020 Census, providing brilliant, timely insight about how Latinos have come to self-identify.