Category: May

May 1 is celebrated as May Day, International Workers Day, and Día del Trabajo in many countries around the world.  It is an official holiday in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela – among other South and Central American countries.  On May 1, 2006, Latino, Catholic, and immigrant rights groups organized the… Continue reading May 1 / May Day

On May 11, 2012, the fourth annual Pachanga Latino Music Festival opened in Austin, Texas.  The Festival featured international, national and local artists such as Los Lonely Boys, Chico Trujillos, Ana Tijoux, Alejandro Escovedo, Forro in the Dark, Ruben Ramos and The Mexican Revolution, La Santa Cecilia, and Girl In A Coma.  Niños Rock Pachanga… Continue reading Pachanga Latino Music Festival

On May 31, 2011, President Barak Obama appointed Dr. Alicia Abella to the Presidential Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.  Abella is the Executive Director of the Innovative Services Research Department at AT&T, where she manages research on data mining, user interfaces, IPTV, mobile services, and SIP/VoIP technology. Abella earned her PhD and MS… Continue reading Dr. Alicia Abella, Presidential Appointee 2011

On May 19, 2011, Frankie Maybee of Green Forest, Arkansas, was convicted by jury of five counts of committing a federal hate crime.  In June 2010, Maybee and his accomplice targeted five Hispanic men in a gas station parking lot. Though Maybee did not know the men and the five did not do or say… Continue reading Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009

In the cool hours of the dark desert night on May 30, 2009, three Arizonans in the self-proclaimed Minutemen American Defense broke into the home of the Flores family.  In cold blood, they shot and killed 29-year-old Raul “Junior” Flores and his 9-year-old daughter Brisenia. They tried to murder the child’s mother and Raul’s wife,… Continue reading The Murder of Brisenia 2009

On May 26, 2009, Sonia Sotomayor was nominated by President Barack Obama as a Supreme Court Justice.  Sotomayor was the first Latina woman to receive this nomination and appointment.  Sotomayor was raised in a housing project in the Bronx, New York, with a mother determined to educate her children. Sotomayor recalled that, “…we were the… Continue reading Nomination of Sonia Sotomayor 2009

On May 6, 2006, Latinx Jimmy Smits won the ALMA (American Latino Media Arts) Award for outstanding actor in the television series, “The West Wing”.  ALMA honors programming that shows positive images of Latinos in the arts. In “The West Wing”, Smits played the role of Congressman Mike Santos, who ran for President in the… Continue reading Jimmy Smits, ALMA Award Winner

On May 17, 2005, Antonio Villaraigosa was elected as the first Latino mayor of Los Angeles, California, in over 100 years. His Mexican immigrant father was an alcoholic who abandoned the family, and Villaraigosa had a troubled adolescence.  He was expelled from high school for fighting, and later was charged with assault against a man… Continue reading Antonio Villaraigosa, first Latino Mayor of Los Angeles

On May 15, 2003, Arturo “Arte” Moreno became the first Latino to own a Major League Baseball team, the Anaheim Angels.  Moreno is a fourth generation Mexican American born in Tucson, Arizona.  He and his ten brothers and sisters were raised in a two-bedroom, one bathroom home.  Moreno made his wealth the old fashioned way… Continue reading First Latino Owner of Major League Baseball Team 2003

May 29, 1999 was a momentous day for the space shuttle Discovery, when it docked with the International Space Station for the first time.  Latina Ellen Ochoa was on board and working during the event as mission specialist and engineer.  Her responsibilities included coordinating the transfer of nearly two tons of supplies from one vessel… Continue reading Latina in Space in 1999!

“My Family”, the award winning film about three generations of Mexican Americans, was released on May 3, 1995. The film was directed by Gregory Nava, and featured Latinx stars Jimmy Smits, Edward James Olmos, Jennifer Lopez, and Esai Morales, among other talents.  The emotionally complex drama begins with the life of the eldest brother, who… Continue reading  “My Family”, Award Winning Film 1995

On May 23, 1993, 18-year-old Dayanara Torres from Puerto Rico was crowned as the 42nd Miss Universe.  Torres then launched her career as a singer, actress, writer, and model, and has appeared in several US television series and movies in the Philippines. Torres authored the self-help book, “Married to Me” after her divorce from Latino… Continue reading Dayanara Torres, Miss Universe 1993

On May 13, 1985, beautiful, talented Laura Elena Martinez-Herring was crowned as Miss USA, the first Latina to win the honor.  Martinez was born in Los Mochis, a city in western Mexico.  Her family later settled in Texas, the state that she represented in the Miss USA competition.  Martinez studied at Aiglon College, a Swiss… Continue reading First Latina Miss USA 1985

On May 10, 1984, the International Court of Justice in the city of The Hague in the Netherlands ruled that the US should cease its blockade of Nicaraguan ports and stop laying mines in the Nicaraguan harbor.  The court held that, “The right to sovereignty and  to political  independence possessed by the Republic of Nicaragua,… Continue reading Justice for Nicaragua? 1984

A violent, fiery plane crash into a mountain on May 24, 1981 ended the life of Jaime Roldós Aguilera, then President of Ecuador.  Aguilera was an educator, author, and politician.   At 39 years old, he was the youngest President elected in the Western Hemisphere.   He took office following a difficult nine-year period of military and… Continue reading Jaime Roldós Aguilera, President of Ecuador 1981

Happy Birthday to Enrique Iglesias, born May 8, 1975 in Madrid, Spain, to a Spanish father and Philippine mother. Iglesias grew up in Miami and studied at the University of Miami.  He cites his musical influences as artists such as Dire Straits, John Mellencamp, and Fleetwood Mac. Iglesias has sold over 100 million records worldwide,… Continue reading Enrique Iglesias, Spanish Singer

Jockey Angel Cordero, Jr., riding the racehorse Cannonade, burst over the finish line on May 4, 1974, winning the 100th Kentucky Derby.  Cordero is a native of Puerto Rico, and the only jockey from The Island inducted into the US Racing Hall of Fame.  Cordero is regarded as one of thoroughbred racing’s lead competitors.   Nicknamed… Continue reading Angel Cordero, Jr., “King of Saratoga”

Happy Birthday to Gabriela Beatriz Sabatini, born on May 16, 1970.  As amateur in 1984, Sabatini was youngest player ever to win a round at the US Open.  That same year, she was ranked as the top Junior player in the world.  She turned pro in 1985 at the age of 14, and set another… Continue reading Gabriela Beatriz Sabatini, Star Athlete

On May 10, 1969, the United Farm Workers issued their Boycott Day Proclamation: “We, the striking grape workers of California, join on this International Boycott Day with the consumers across the continent in planning the steps that lie ahead on the road to our liberation…. If this road we chart leads to the rights and… Continue reading UFW Boycott Day Proclamation 1969

The Poor People’s March on Washington, DC on May 12, 1968.  The march was planned and organized by Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.  (King was assassinated on April 4, 1968.) Latino activist Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzalez (1928 –2005) joined the march, and issued his manifesto, “Demandas de la Raza” (Demands of… Continue reading Poor People’s March on Washington, DC 1968

During intense enemy fire on May 2, 1968, US Army Sergeant Roy Perez Benavidez valiantly rescued his fellow soldiers at Loc Ninh, Vietnam.  (The Vietnam War was from 1955 to 1975.)  Benavidez was severely wounded during the rescue, and courageously continued to carry soldiers to safety and to destroy classified documents, preventing their capture by… Continue reading US Army Sergeant and Hero Roy Perez Benavidez 1968

On May 14, 1962, Princess Sophia of Greece married King Juan Carlos I of Spain, and the couple reigned in Spain until 2014.  Juan Carlos and Sophia have governed during turbulent times.  The King managed the transition from Franco’s dictatorship to a constitutional government in the mid-1970s.  The couple has three children and eight grandchildren. … Continue reading Queen of Spain 1962

On May 1, 1961, Fidel Castro (1926-2016) officially abolished multiparty elections and declared that Cuba was a socialist state.  Castro stated that, “The revolution has no time for elections. There is no more democratic government in Latin America than the revolutionary government.”  Really?!  A BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) journalist reported that Castro’s revolution seems to… Continue reading “The revolution has no time for elections”? Really?

Archbishop Patrick F. Flores was first ordained as a priest on May 26, 1956. Flores’ parents were Mexican immigrants and migrant farm workers living in Ganado, Texas.  He was the first Mexican-American Catholic Archbishop in the US.  Flores helped to establish the National Foundation of Mexican American Vocations and the National Hispanic Scholarship Fund.  He… Continue reading Archbishop Patrick F. Flores ordination in 1956

Happy Birthday to writer, scholar, professor and activist Vicki Lynn Ruiz.  Ruiz was born in Atlanta, Georgia on May 21, 1955, to a Mexican mother and a North American father, whose parents disowned him for marrying a Mexican. Ruiz earned her master’s degree and doctorate in history from Stanford University.   Her doctoral dissertation studied Mexican… Continue reading Vicki Lynn Ruiz, Writer, Scholar, and Professor

Happy Birthday to Alfred Molina, a British born American actor with a Spanish father.  One of Molina’s greatest bursts of artistic inspiration was fellow Brit Anthony Hopkins.  In an interview with “Back Stage West”, Molina recalled that, “the way he [Hopkins] worked, his demeanor onstage–he looked like a regular guy. And I thought, People like… Continue reading Happy Birthday to Alfred Molina, Actor

Happy Birthday to Antonia Hernández, born on May 30, 1948 in Coahuila, Mexico.  Hernández immigrated to the US with her family when she was 8 years old.  Her mother stated in an interview with Parent magazine that, “In my time, women didn’t have the freedom that women have today, but I wanted my daughters to… Continue reading Happy Birthday to Antonia Hernández, MALDEF President

May 18, 1948 is the birthday of Frank del Olmo, writer, editor, and columnist for the Los Angeles Times. Olmo earned a BS in journalism from California State University.  He raised awareness of Latino issues and advocated increased hiring of Latino reporters.  Olmo received an Emmy Award for The Unwanted (1975), a documentary about the… Continue reading Frank del Olmo, Writer and Editor

Happy Birthday to author, editor and documentary filmmaker Esmeralda Santiago, born on May 17, 1948 in Santurce, Puerto Rico. Santiago immigrated to the US with her family when she was 11 years old.  She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and earned her MFA at Sarah Lawrence College. Santiago’s writings capture the emotional, psychological… Continue reading Esmeralda Santiago, Author, Editor and Documentary Filmmaker

Happy Birthday to Tania Leon, the Cuban born, multi-talented composer, conductor, music director and musician.  In Cuba, Leon studied piano, violin, and music theory, earning multiple degrees music.  She was the first Music Director of the Dance Theatre of Harlem in New York, inspiring the troupe from 1969 until 1990.  Her appearances as a guest… Continue reading Tania Leon, Composer, Conductor, Music Director and Musician

The Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was established during World War II on May 15, 1942, to “[make] available to the national defense the knowledge, skill and special training of the women of the nation”.  Carmen Contreras Bozak was the first Latinx woman to enlist, serving as interpreter and in administrative positions to manage communications… Continue reading Carmen Contreras Bozak, Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps 1942

The electrifying voice that sang “La Bamba”, the rock and roll version of a traditional Mexican ballad, was first heard on May 13, 1941, with the birth of Richard Steven Valenzuela.  Later known as Ritchie Valens, he was a Mexican-American singer, songwriter, and guitarist whose brief but brilliant career influenced a generation of musicians, including… Continue reading Richard Steven Valenzuela 1941

On May 3, 1933, American poet Archibald MacLeish won the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry for his epic work, “The Conquistador”.   The poem is in the voice of Bernal Diaz, an old man who in his youth was a soldier with Cortez’s invading army in the war against the Aztec empire.  To research the background for… Continue reading “The Conquistador” 1933

Happy Birthday to José Montoya (1932 – 2013), poet, activist, teacher and painter, born on May 28, 1932.  Montoya’s grandparents from Mexico received a land grant from the US government.  They settled near Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Montoya was born.  Montoya earned his MFA at Sacramento State University.  He helped to found the Mexican American… Continue reading José Montoya, Poet, Activist, Teacher and Painter

May 12, 1928 is the birthday of Manuel Luján, Jr., born on a small farm near San Ildelfonso, New Mexico.  In 1968, Luján was elected to Congress.  In the 1970’s and early 1980’s Luján was one of the few prominent Latinx Republicans, and the only Republican member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.  He usually supported… Continue reading Manuel Luján, Jr., Congressman

Happy Birthday to Richard Alonzo Gonzales, nicknamed “Pancho”, apparently because his non-Hispanic childhood friends did not know any other Mexican names.  Gonzales’ parents immigrated to the US from Chihuahua, Mexico. His father worked as a house painter and his mother as a seamstress.  His mother bought him his first tennis racket for 51 cents.  Gonzalez… Continue reading Richard Alonzo Gonzales, World Tennis Champion

May 9, 1928 is the birthday of Graciela Olivárez, lawyer, social activist, professor, and political appointee.  Olivárez was born in Phoenix, Arizona. Although she initially dropped out of high school, Olivárez graduated from the Notre Dame School of Law in 1970. The then 42-year old Olivárez was the first woman to graduate from this prestigious… Continue reading Graciela Olivárez, Lawyer, Social Activist, Professor

On May 7, 1928, all-American writer Thorton Wilder won the Pulitzer Prize for “The Bridge of San Luis Rey”.  According to a review by Twentieth-Century Romance and Historical Writers, the book was “a stylized fable set in colonial Peru, where a famous rope bridge over a deep chasm collapses while five travelers, all of whom… Continue reading “The Bridge of San Luis Rey” 1928

May 5, 1928 is the birthday of Roberto José Suarez y de Cardenas, a distinguished journalist, editor, and publisher.   He was the publisher of El Nuevo Herald, the Spanish language newspaper published by the Miami Herald. Cardenas was born in Havana, Cuba, and in his youth he played basketball with Fidel Castro.  He became disillusioned… Continue reading Roberto José Suarez y de Cardenas, Journalist and Editor

On May 19, 1921, the Emergency Immigration Act of 1921 was passed.   This Act limited the number of immigrants allowed to enter the US during a single year, and was the first such Act in US history.  This legislation limited immigration from Europe to 3% of each European nationality present in the US in 1910. … Continue reading Emergency Immigration Act of 1921

On May 25, 1920, schoolteacher Robert T. Meyer taught one of his fourth-grade pupils to read the Bible in the German language. (There goes the neighborhood!) An attorney from Hamilton County learned of the highly subversive incident, and charged the teacher with shockingly violating a Nebraska law that prohibited teaching foreign languages to elementary school pupils.  Meyer… Continue reading Meyer v. Nebraska and the struggle for bilingual education 1923

May 7, 1919 was the beginning of the passionate, unpredictable life of María Eva Duarte de Perón, known throughout the world and in the Broadway musical as Evita.  Evita was born in poverty in Argentina, and at the age of 16, she went to Buenos Aires, the capital city, to become a successful actress.  After… Continue reading Evita of Argentina 1919

May 29, 1918 is the birthday of Humberto Noé “Bert” Corona, a union, political and civil rights activist who spent over 70 years of his life in public service.  Corona was born in El Paso, Texas, to Mexican parents.  He received a basketball scholarship to the University of Southern California, but dropped out to work… Continue reading Humberto Noé “Bert” Corona, Union Leader and Civil Rights Activist

Before Selena and J-Lo were known only by their first names, there was Lydia.  May 21, 1916 Lydia Mendoza was born on May 21, 1916 in Houston, Texas.  Accompanied by her 12 string guitar, Lydia was a pioneer of the Tejano music movement.  She recorded more than 200 songs in the first 6 years of… Continue reading “Lydia” 1916

May 20, 1910 is the birthday of the Grande Dame of New Mexico, Concha Ortiz y Pino de Kleven. Pino was born in Galisteo, New Mexico, and her ancestors in the Pino and Ortiz families were among the earliest European settlers of New Mexico.  One of these ancestors, Nicolas Pino, was a leader of a… Continue reading The Grande Dame of New Mexico 1910

May 16, 1910 is the birthday of Admiral Horacio Rivero, Jr. the first Puerto Rican four-star Admiral and second Latino to become a full Admiral in the modern US Navy.  Rivero graduated from the US Naval Academy, ranking third in his class of 441.  He served in World War II in the Pacific theater, earning… Continue reading Admiral Horacio Rivero, Jr., first Puerto Rican Four Star Admiral

May 25, 1906 is the birthday of Martín Magdaleno Dihigo Llanos, born in Matanzas Province, Cuba.  Dihigo was a baseball player in the Negro and Latin American leagues.  He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.  According to the Hall of Fame, “Martin Dihigo was perhaps the most versatile player in… Continue reading Martín Magdaleno Dihigo Llanos, El Maestro

On May 11, 1904, our contemporary world became more colorful and eccentric with the birth of artist Salvador Dali in Figueras, Spain.  Dali became one of the most influential and well-known painters of the 20th century – partly due to genius and partly due to his self-described exhibitionism and delight in shocking the public.  His… Continue reading Salvador Dali, Spanish Artist 1904

The Platt Amendment was approved by the US Congress on May 22, 1903.  The Amendment stipulated the conditions for the withdrawal of US troops that remained in Cuba at the end of the Spanish-American War.  A key provision of the Amendment was the perpetual lease of Guantanamo Bay, a 45 square mile area of southeastern… Continue reading The Platt Amendment 1903

May 20, 1900 is the birthday of Lydia Cabrera, considered by contemporaries as the premiere Cuban ethnologist and Cuba’s matriarch of “letters”.  (In the 20th century, people wrote thoughtful, lengthy communications by hand with pen and ink on paper, called “letters”.) Cabrera focused on Afro-Cuban history, and wrote scholarly volumes and entertaining fiction, including work… Continue reading Lydia Cabrera, Matriarch of Letters 1900

On May 27, 1898, Texas native Juan Alamia volunteered for the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry in San Antonio, Texas.  This unit was later known as the “Rough Riders” under the leadership of the charismatic Colonel Theodore Roosevelt.  (Theodore Roosevelt served as US President from 1901-1909.)  As a soldier in the Rough Riders, Alamia fought… Continue reading Juan Alamia of the Rough Riders 1898

On May 2, 1896, undocumented US Marines invaded the sovereign nation of Nicaragua, ostensibly “to protect US interests” during a period of political unrest.  The undocumented Marines landed at Corinto on the Pacific coast of the country. Corinto is now a small, peaceful beach town, and one of Nicaragua’s largest ports and a popular stop… Continue reading US Marines Invade Nicaragua in 1896 … again!

The Chinese Exclusion Act was signed into US federal law on May 8, 1882.  The Act was the first major immigration legislation based on nationality.   It was designed to reduce the number of Americans of Chinese descent and to disenfranchise as many as possible through measures such as removing the right to naturalization.  Chinese immigrants… Continue reading  The Chinese Exclusion Act 1882

On May 18, 1876, American troops landed in Matamoras, Mexico, ostensibly “to police the town of Matamoras” while it was temporarily without a government (Really?).  Matamoras is located on the north eastern Gulf coast of Mexico, near the border with Texas. Presumably, the US troops had their passports and work visas in order.  Or maybe not?… Continue reading US invades Mexico in 1876 … again

During the US Civil War at the Battle at Horse Landing on May 22, 1864, Confederate soldiers were assisted by Cuban-born immigrant Panchita Sánchez Miot.  Sánchez and her sisters spied for the Confederacy, and the local Union intelligence never suspected that the little brown women were outwitting them.  On a balmy night in May, Union officers… Continue reading Panchita Sánchez Miot, Confederate Spy 1864

On May 28, 1862, the newly formed Garibaldi Brigade (39th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment) marched out of the state of New York to defend the struggling US Government.  The bloody Civil War (1861 to 1865) between the northern and southern states was raging, and many immigrants enlisted to support the Union.  Many of the… Continue reading Garibaldi Brigade 1862

Mexican Independence Day?  Not exactly.  May 5, or Cinco de Mayo, celebrates the 1862 Battle of Puebla, in which the Mexican Army defeated the French Army.  What were the French doing there?  It’s complicated.  After costly civil wars, Mexican President Benito Juárez issued a moratorium suspending all foreign debt payments for two years.  Their impatient… Continue reading Mexican Independence Day?

On May 27, 1812, hundreds of freedom fighting women of Cochabamba, Bolivia, joined in the May 27, 1812 Battle of La Coronilla.  The women (and men) were fighting against the Spanish rulers in the Bolivian War of Independence.  The Bolivian War of Independence began in 1809 and lasted until 1825.  Bolivians celebrate Mother’s Day on… Continue reading The Woman Warriors 1812

On May 31, 1790, Peruvian cartographer and naval officer Manuel Quimper Benítez del Pino explored and charted the Strait of Juan de Fuca.  This Strait is the wide waterway stretching from the Pacific Ocean on the west to the San Juan Islands on the east, with Vancouver Island, Canada to the north.  The international boundary… Continue reading Manuel Quimper Benítez del Pino, Peruvian Explorer 1790

On May 23, 1776, shortly before the July 4 Declaration of Independence was signed, the Cuban vessel, the Santa Barbara, was captured by a British warship in the Delaware Bay. On board was Miguel Eduardo Antonio, sent by the Spanish government in Havana to make contact with the North American rebels. He was traveling under the guise… Continue reading Miguel Eduardo Antonio, Spanish Agent and Spy 1776

On May 4, 1493, Roman Catholic Pope Alexander VI brazenly issued the document “Inter caetera” that divided the continent of South America between Spain and Portugal.  No consideration was given for the Native American nations that had settled and lived in the continent for more than 30,000 years.   The “Inter caetera” continues to be protested… Continue reading “Inter caetera”, dividing the World in 1493