Hispanic Heritage Month: History, Diversity & Legacies

In 1968, amidst the Puerto Rican and Mexican American civil rights movements, the observation of a Hispanic Heritage Week was initiated under President Lyndon B. Johnson. Twenty years later the celebration was expanded to cover a 30-day period from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. Today, Hispanic Heritage Month is observed where people from twenty different countries celebrate a common Hispanic/Latino heritage at the same time that an anti-immigration narrative against Hispanics/Latinos increases in the U.S.