Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month in your office? Check out these ideas.
Hispanic Heritage Month Latin American provides organizations with the opportunity to support culture makers. Learn how.
National Hispanic Heritage Month, originally called National Hispanic Heritage Week, was signed into public law in 1968 by President Lyndon B Johnson. In 1987, Rep. Esteban Torres of California wanted to go one step further, and created a bill to expand Hispanic Heritage Week into Hispanic Heritage Month. Torres, an advocate for civil rights, wanted the American people to learn the legacy of Latin Americans in the United States. Torres' bill didn't pass but a similar bill would be signed into law a year later– expanding the holiday to 30 full days. Hispanic Heritage Month now starts on September 15th and ends on October 15th on the independence day of many Latin countries.
"We want the public to know that we share a legacy with the rest of the country, a legacy that includes artists, writers, Olympic champions, and leaders in business, government, cinema, and science." - Esteban Torres, United States Rep. for California
Over time the global understanding of Latin American identity has expanded, and there has been recent informal demands to change the official title to Latinx Heritage Month. Many feel that Latinx as a term better describes the diversity that comprises the Latin American identity who may identify anywhere along the gender binary. The celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month acknowledges the contribution of intersecting identities across the Latinx community in the United States.
Although starting in the middle of the month seems pretty odd for a celebration of Latin American Heritage, September 15th and September 16th bear significance for a multitude of Latin American communities from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, and other Central American countries- who all celebrate their independence along these dates. The 30-day celebration also encompasses Columbus day on October 10th, which is an important day for many across Latin America who use the holiday formerly associated with Christopher Columbus, to instead share stories of resilience and independence from colonization.
Each year Latinx Community leaders create a new theme to celebrate the heritage month. While 2021's theme focused on "esperanza"- creating hope and a future for the Latin community in higher education, STEM, and other fields, 2022's theme will focus on "Unidos" or celebrating diversity, intersectionality, and innovation. To find all National Hispanic Heritage Month events happening, skip to the bottom of our article.
According to the census bureau, with the Hispanic population comprising over one-fourth of the workforce in many US states, but less than 1% of representation in leadership, tech, and white-collar professions, the importance of Hispanic Heritage Month to internal DEI initiatives cannot be stated enough. During Hispanic Heritage Month Latin American organizations should provide support for culture makers in the form of networking, personal or career development, and the creation of safe spaces where employees can spark honest dialogue. Celebrating Latinx Heritage Month should empower underrepresented Latin American communities by putting them in the view of decision-makers. These decision-makers then need to implement policies that show direct consideration for the Latin American community's specific needs. By acting as a resource for feedback and collaboration with Latinx employees, culture makers can build trustful relationships with employees that will help them and the company flourish.
Yes! Encouraging allyship amongst leadership and non Latinx employees is a key part of the successful integration of Hispanic Heritage Month within a company. Hispanic Heritage Month should be viewed as a company-wide initiative to increase internal knowledge and understanding of the Hispanic community. There are many ways to participate in the heritage month, but effective ways of celebrating align with the company's mission and contribute to workplace inclusion. Below we provide Hispanic Heritage month resources to help you get started.
20-40 min | Easy
Ideal for: Small groups & teams
How it works: Create a collaborative Spotify playlist for you & your organization to add songs to for Latin Heritage month.
What it'll do for your team: Music is the universal language, and it can provide a venue to build shared tastes in hybrid and remote environments.
60 min | Medium
Ideal for: Small groups
How it works: Create a read list of prolific and accomplished Latinx authors for your team to explore for the month. Then, create virtual sessions for attendees to discuss on a monthly basis, and take turns leading the discussion around the readings.
What it'll do for your team: Discussing different perspectives on books can not only be a breath of fresh air but can also deepen workplace relationships in diverse settings.
60 min | Hard
Ideal for: Company-wide
How it works: Find a good cause you and your organization want to support and gather volunteers to donate money during the course of the month. Popular organizations include Techqueria, Latinas in Tech, and the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley. But it is most impactful when businesses choose a Hispanic serving institution that is relevant to the business's needs or goals.
What it'll do for your team: The world is in need of empathy now more than ever. Rallying your employees and teams around a single cause can really unite in a time when we crave belonging. Let your teams feel that they are contributing to something bigger and have a fun time doing it.
To see more suggestions download our free resource guide book here.
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