Revisiting the “Hispanic” mirage

Since the media is now in full racial-relations regression (h/t Gerard), and I’m under the weather, I thought I’d repost my 2006 post, The “Hispanic” Mirage,

Nowadays the Left will do its outmost to keep you in your underprivileged minority box because it makes them feel good (and after all, it’s their feelingswhat counts). Anyone like myself who doesn’t buy into the designed victimhood role is put down, insulted, derided, and resented.

The manifestations of this can be trivial but very telling, with comments such as “but you don’t even look Puerto Rican”. That particular type of comment (and I’ve heard it enough times that I’d be living like a Sheik if I had $5 for each time) reveals that
a. Puerto Ricans are supposed to look one way, and by implication, behave one way
b. That’s exactly what the person saying that expects.
At this point in the conversation you know they’ve bought into the multi-culti role because they can not get themselves to believe, in spite of my already assuring them, that I’m telling the truth. Not as trivial are downright insults and putdowns where you are essentially told that you are an ungrateful jerk for not appreciating the need “your people” have for the equal opportunity handout’s munificence.

While the people saying this usually have not an idea of who “my people” are – and have an equally less realistic notion of my own life story, or what kind of travails my friends have overcome – the underlying assumption is that all Hispanics belong to the oppressed, underprivileged minority that should be celebrated not for their own individual deeds, characters, achievements and merits, but for the sake of “multicultural diversity” because they can not get out of that oppressed, underprivileged situation on their own.

The hard-earned accomplishment of the individual is erased for the sake of a faceless, and I should say, worthless construct.

Additionally, as Dr. Sowell and others have repeatedly explained, the assumption is that the “minority” person has accomplished something only because of reverse discrimination. This, in turn, perpetuates the culture of victimization as it denies credit where due – when talent, hard work, virtue, and perseverance have brought the accomplishment – to the individual of merit.

When it comes to Hispanics, the dirty little secret is that there is no such thing as Hispanic.

I am not discovering America here, but maybe America needs to discover this.

There are two dozen Spanish-speaking countries in the Americas. Each one of those countries is as unique as countries can be. Their histories are different, their customs, foods, music, traditions, and even their slang, are different. Every “Hispanic” country has peoples of every ethnic origin, race, religion, economic status, family size, educational background, physical size and build, level of work skills, and intellectual and mental ability. You will find this to be the case even more dramatically in all cities with large ports, and in resort areas. A lot of people from other countries who come for trade and pleasure return to settle permanently in those areas.

You want diversity? Let’s look at real diversity:

There are Peruvians of Japanese ancestry (and one of them became president of Peru). There are Chinese Cubans. There are English Puerto Ricans (my mother’s high school teacher’s family, for instance) – and Puerto Rico has a significantillegal alien problem from people from adjacent islands. There are German Venezuelans. There are Irish Argentinians. The Africans that were brought to Latin America from the slave trade are not all from the same areas of Africa and did not follow the same traditions. Even among the native peoples, the Peruvian Quechua are not the Chilean Mapuche who are not the Mayans of Apocalypto.

Within countries there are significant differences. For example: Among the millions of legal and illegal immigrants to the USA, there are hundreds of native associations, particularly in the South West. Do a google search for asociacion Oaxaca and you’ll find 966,000 results. The Mexicans who come from Oaxaca will tell you that they are not the Mexicans from the capital (Distrito Federal), and that they enjoy getting together with their friends from their corner of the old country, hence, the asociaciones Oaxaqueñas.

However, here in the USA there are a large number of people who are making money out of the “multicultural diversity” culture of dependence, and the industry it has generated, who are willing to go along. Some may be politicians, some may be bureaucrats, some may be using the sizeable amount of monies allocated to “minority businesses”, some just like to get a handout. And then there are theprofessional Hispanics, which as Val has correctly pointed out,

Professional Hispanics have no discernible talent other than to beat their chest and play the race card. It’s just sad. 

So please, let’s start looking at the content of our characters and give up on the content of our constructs.

I stand by my words.

UPDATE,
Linked by Gerard. Thanks!
Linked by American Rattlesnake. Thanks!