Berto
Colón
Actor ("Orange is the New Black")
Being a Latino means having a deep-rooted sense of loyalty, pride, respect and honor; to your family, your land and your culture. It means being diverse and transformative and adaptable. It means to be strong and resilient, yet generous and warm.
Growing up Latino meant that I was part of something very unique. It was hard for me to fathom the idea that being born on such a small island carried with it this amazing burden of being part of this seemingly huge culture when compared to the rest of the world – so rich with ideals, values, tradition and history! It taught me to not only love my culture but to also respect others!
Recognizing one's self-worth and value to their family and culture is at the core of who we are and what our lives are to be. I'm so grateful and proud to be Boricua!
April Lee
Hernandez
Actress
Being Latino means, to me, being able to overcome the impossible and make all our dreams a reality.
For me, growing up in the Bronx during the '80s, at a time when salsa and hip-hop were being born, meant so much to me. In my home, on Saturday mornings, we would clean the house listening to Hector Lavoe. Being Latino meant being proud of my culture and the passion we have as a family. Latinos are so passionate and charismatic! I love being a Latina born and raised in the Bronx.
As an actor, I never cared to be labeled as a "Latina actress" because I felt it would keep me in a box. Till this day I just prefer to be known as an actor who happens to be Latina. It is hard enough being a woman in the industry, let alone Latina. But today we have become the majority and we have so many more opportunities, which makes me proud and very happy!
Celines
Toribio
Actress
I grew up in a humble family with a lot of love and education [in the Dominican Republic], but not wealthy. So I remember that with my first color TV, I saw [Latinos like] Raúl Juliá or Rita Moreno. For me it was like "Wow!" Those were the names growing up that I said: "I want to be like them! They're Latinos making it in the United States?"
I knew that they were human beings in the United States with a mission, who came here to overcome their barriers, to help their loved ones back home. And they had a mission of letting everybody know what it means to be representing their flag. So for me, it was exciting, it challenged me. And that's why I came to the United States.
Overall, I relate a lot to women who follow their dreams no matter what, who cross borders like Maria Montez, from Barahona, a very small town of the Dominican Republic, to Hollywood. She did 26 films for Universal Studios. That to me was breaking the mold. This was breaking the mold back in the '30s and the '40s in a Caribbean country. So I followed her footsteps and that's why I'm paying tribute to her life in this movie [2014's "María Montez: The Movie"].
Gregorio
Uribe
Musician
My heart is in Colombia, my mind is in New York. In the Tower of Babel that is New York, one of the first things people ask each other when meeting is "Where are you from?" So the first thing people will know about me is that I'm Colombian, even before they know I'm a musician. Also, the fact that most folks will think I'm Lebanese, Israeli or Turkish before they think I'm from Latin America tells me that "Latino" is an identity, not a race.
Jessica
Wiscovitch
Artist
Being Latino means allowing myself to be me, identifying as a person first and Latino second. Not allowing preconceived notions or labels of what a Latino should be or do [to define me].
Growing up Latino meant feeling, hearing, smelling and seeing the world around me through a Hispanic lens. Feeling the power and hopelessness of my people, hearing the chitter-chatter, or "bochinche," of yesterday's old news, smelling the rice and beans and sofrito coming out of someone's grandmother's window and seeing the community in a back-and-forth trance of expression and attitude.
Joanna
Hausmann
Comedian and Writer, Flama
Latinos understand each other in a fundamental way. It's like being part of the less melodramatic "Breakfast Club." Although it may seem like we are from totally different "cliques," we aren't all that different, especially when it comes to breaking away from stereotypes about our identity... and mom jeans, but that last part is just a reference to the movie.
I moved around a lot growing up, so every time I'd start at a new school outside of Venezuela and revealed I was Latina, what would follow would be: "You're WHAT? How? But you don't seem to be one..." So I always felt like my phenotype was conspiring against my identity. But then I'd go home to my mom playing Rubén Blades while frying plantains next to a sprawling painting of Caracas' skyline and I'd forget about whatever identity crisis I had that day.
Kelvin
Fernandez
Executive Chef
I was born and raised in Harlem. My parents are from the Dominican Republic. They moved to America, obviously, to give us a better lifestyle. The funny thing is, I didn't know I was raised poor until I became older and I knew what food stamps were and living in the projects. And that's inspiring, to know how hard they worked to make sure that I never felt I needed anything other than what I had.
I think what I love the most about being Latino is no matter what you do – as long as you're doing something positive – the community will push you to the front and make sure you're successful, and that the world knows that you're great at what you do. I think that's one of the most amazing feelings. It's the support.
Being a chef... what I always love to do is go back to my roots. I started as a classically French-trained chef, and even back then, I always found ways to sneak in a little bit of Latin flair, whether I got in trouble or not.
Laura
Gómez
Actress ("Orange is the New Black")
Growing up, being Latina didn't mean much because I was raised in the Dominican Republic, and you just are. I understood it more when I moved to New York because here I understand that it's a way of staying connected to your roots.
I'm very proud of my background but I don't like to be defined by layers or labels. Being Latina is a layer that maybe decides your household or your culture but not who you are.
In my career it can be an obstacle or it can be a gift – I always take it as a gift. But it has defined me in the sense that it makes me understand a lot of what is going on socially and racially in this country, and I appreciate that. I appreciate not being in a bubble. Being Latino makes me feel politically conscious.
Rob
Rios III
Entertainer and Writer
As a singer/entertainer, many expected me to sing in Spanish. But to me that's never been true to my artistry. English is my first language. I grew up with '80s pop, hip-hop and freestyle.
I've always wanted to be an entertainer, bandleader and movie star like Ricky Ricardo, and not singing in English seemed too gimmicky. I was born here, I shouldn't have to "cross over" when I'm just as much American as Puerto Rican. It made me hell-bent on breaking against the mold and fine-tuning my style.
My musical legacy, though it started two Robert Rios ago, enabled me to live out my destiny and create "The Life Soul Musement" – an album I hope will help inspire all those like me, who are searching for where they fit in between both worlds and aren't afraid to challenge the perception of what others think they should be.
Roberto "GXMMX"
Alduey
Recording Artist and Graphic Designer
Being Latino means striving for the next generation and remembering the past generation's struggle to assimilate.
Growing up Latino I realized I wasn't Caucasian and I wasn't African-American. I felt somewhere in between. I began classifying people I encountered by their character, not their race. I made friends of all races, because none could pinpoint mine.
Sara
Choe
Sous-Chef, Greentree Foundation
The most important part about being Latina for me is the culture – I identify through the culture and language. Mainly, I think it's the language that makes me identify as Latina.
To tell you the truth, when I was little and lived in Argentina – now that I think about it – I had absolutely no idea what my dual identity meant to me. I knew my situation, that my parents were Korean and I was Argentine, but I wasn't aware of cultural influences, cultural definitions or any of those things until I came here when I was 20.
When I arrived to the United States, I realized that there are so many cultures, and [that] how they relate to each other and how one identifies with certain cultures is based on the customs, language, religion and things like that.
In Argentina, people would see that you're Korean and in the beginning they'd treat you a little different but two seconds later it would pass. Here, for example, you're not Argentine or Korean. I'm used to it now, but it's one of the most important things to have shaped my life. It's something very important because they are two very different cultures – in my case, two completely opposite cultures – and balancing these two cultures has been very difficult. But right now I am at peace and super happy. I feel that it's an advantage to be able to have these perspectives that open my mind.
Latinos Break The Mold
Artists