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Sep 26, 2012 | Denise Treviño

Diocese of Texas Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month

September 15 kicked off National Hispanic Heritage Month. It runs thru October 15. For those of you unfamiliar with Hispanic Heritage Month, it is a time when people recognize the contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States and celebrate the group's heritage and culture. Hispanic Heritage Week was initially approved by President Lyndon Johnson and was expanded by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 to cover a 30-day period.

 

September 15 was chosen as the starting point for the celebration because it is the anniversary of independence of five Latin American countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. They all declared independence in 1821. In addition, Mexico, Chile and Belize celebrate their independence days on September 16, September 18, and September 21, respectively. 

 

Below are some links to our website that I hope might be helpful in gaining a better understanding of the Hispanic culture. In addition to the links below, please continue to check out epicenter.org as new videos, events, photos, interviews, etc. will be added weekly until October 15. And on October 13, you’re invited to Santa Maria Virgen for the 2nd Annual Hispanic Festival. The Rev. Canon John Newton will be on hand celebrating in Spanish.

 

Here you can find some brief explanations about the differences between being Hispanic, Latino and Chicano: 

 

http://www.epicenter.org/what-is-the-difference/

 

Here are some videos that will introduce you to some of the diverse Hispanic clergy around the Diocese as well as other topics around the Hispanic culture. In addition, we will also be adding more interviews throughout the month with some of our other Hispanic clergy and lay people that will share their personal stories and favorite cultural traditions

 

http://www.epicenter.org/media-video/?category=intercultural

 

- Denise Trevino is the missioner for intercultural development