LibGuides: Hispanic American History: Media

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America! (14:00) People of Hispanic origin make up a rapidly growing socioeconomic sector in the U.S. Spanish is heard—and seen—almost everywhere; on thousands of TV channels and radio stations, not to mention in the day-to-day life of cities, towns, and rural areas across the nation. This program explores useful Spanish vocabulary and phrases as it profiles Americans for whom Spanish is the primary language. Viewers become familiar with members of a local pop group in San Antonio, Texas, who are of Mexican descent, and a community organizer in New York City whose Puerto Rican ancestry informs his work. A BBC Production. Part of the series Sueños: World Spanish.
Challenging Hispanic Stereotypes: Arturo Madrid (30:00) Arturo Madrid’s ancestors made a home on American soil before the Mayflower arrived, but strangers still ask him, "And where are you from?" Weary of always being perceived as "the other," he has devoted himself to challenging the stereotypes that keep Hispanics outside the American mainstream. Madrid is a teacher and president of the Tomas Rivera Center, where he focuses on issues and policies affecting the Latino community. In this program with Bill Moyers, he discusses the controversy surrounding bilingual education and the state of education, in general, for Hispanic people.
Growing Up Hispanic: Children in Crisis (58:00) Reports from reputable medical sources reveal a statistical correlation between healthcare issues and poor academic performance in Hispanic communities nationwide. In this program, the National Council of La Raza’s Raul Yzaguirre, former Surgeon General David Satcher, the Hispanic Dental Association’s Nelson Artiga, and other experts address the pervasive health concerns—most notably dental problems and pediatric obesity—and insufficient access to healthcare that plague America’s Hispanic population, significantly undermining Latino children’s education as well as long-term well-being. Health initiatives in California, Texas, Florida, and New York are featured, along with case studies from those states.
Moyers & Company: Hispanic America's Turn (57:00) By 2050, Hispanics are projected to number 132 million and represent 30 percent of the U.S. population. And as that population evolves, so does their political power; since 2008, America’s Latino voting population has grown 22 percent. In this edition of Moyers & Company, Bill goes beyond the numbers with two of our nation’s most popular and influential journalists: Univision’s Jorge Ramos and María Elena Salinas. Also included is an essay on a young soldier killed in Afghanistan and the Republican congressman he inspired to ask, “Why are we killing kids that don’t need to die?”
Series: Americano as Apple Pie: The Latino Experience in America This informative series looks at a variety of issues concerning the Latino cultures in America, including the size and history of different Hispanic populations and the effects of current U.S. immigration laws. The programs examine Latino identity in both thriving urban neighborhoods and isolated rural towns and feature a host of prominent figures in the greater Hispanic community. 2-part series, 30 minutes each.
Series: The Hispanic Americans In this 7-part series, hosted by actors Jimmy Smits and Hector Elizondo, dozens of Hispanics—some famous, some average people—explore what it means to be Hispanic American. 7-part series, 44 minutes each.
Series: The Latino Americans The 6 part series chronicles Latinos in the United States from the 1500's to present day. It is a story of people, politics, and culture, intersecting with much that is central to the history of the United States while also going to places where standard U.S. histories do not tend to tread. Latino Americans relies on historical accounts and personal experiences to vividly tell the stories of early settlement, conquest and immigration; of tradition and reinvention; and of anguish and celebration, from the millions of people who come to the U.S. from Mexico, Spain, Puerto Rico, and countries in Central and South America. The programs are driven by the human dramas of individuals' struggles and triumphs, successes and disappointments, featuring interviews with close to 100 Latinos from the worlds of politics, business, military, academia, literature, and pop culture, as well as deeply personal portraits of Latinos who lived through key chapters in American history. PBS.
Victim of Two Cultures: Richard Rodriguez (52:00) Richard Rodriguez, the son of Mexican immigrants, calls himself "a comic victim of two cultures." He started out speaking nothing but Spanish, and now argues for education in nothing but English. A Fulbright scholar with degrees from Stanford and Columbia, he suddenly walked away from a promising career in academia; despite his ambition to teach, he rebelled against job offers that, he says, came to him just because of his Hispanic surname. In this program with Bill Moyers, Rodriguez explains his opposition to bilingual education and talks about his experience growing up in America as the son of immigrants; he also discusses the differences between Mexican and American cultures.