Black History Month: What Does It Mean To Be Afro-Latino?

It is a common misconception that all Latinos look a certain way and belong to a single race. Within Hispanics, Latinos and African-Americans are a multitude of ethnicities that require more specific recognition in order to be asserted. The short (and correct) definition of the term Afro-Latino would be: people with African descent whose origins are in Latin America and the Caribbean. Note that it is much more about where people and their ancestors came from, than it is about language or where they live. The ethnic group says it’s a struggle to feel left out of the Hispanic community and are seeking recognition from censuses to get more acceptance from both Latinos and African-Americans.

The Chief of the Bureau’s Racial Statistics Branch, Nicholas Jones says he believes “what we’re hearing from the Afro-Latino community is that they do not believe that those numbers accurately illustrate the Afro-Latino community presence in the United States, and that’s the dialogue that we’re having.” The intent to make the Census more accurate is to get a better understanding of the population but some think this might encourage Hispanics to think of themselves as a separate race.

Some of the most influential Afro-Latinos include: Singers-songwriters, Mariah Carey and Celia Cruz, actress Zoe Saldana, CNN’s Soledad O'Brien, “Clueless” star Stacey Dash, actor Laz Alonso, baseball star Alex Rodriguez (aka A-Rod), NY Giants receiver Victor Cruz, NY Knicks’ Carmelo Anthony, “Glee” star Naya Rivera, actress Rosario Dawson, Sammi Davis Jr., Rosie Perez, Esperanza Spalding, actress Tatyana Ali and supermodel Joan Smalls, amongst many others.