It’s the start of Hispanic Heritage Month, but what does that mean? Hispanic Heritage Month officially starts on September 15th and ends on October 15th. Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates the histories, cultures, and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. The date of September 15 is because it’s the anniversary of the independence of Latin American countries like Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence dates on September 16th and 18th as well.

But how did Hispanic Heritage Month begin? Well, it began as a commemorative week when it was first introduced in June of 1968 by California Congressman George E. Brown. The push to recognize the contributions of the Hispanic community had gained great support throughout the 1960s when the civil rights movement was at its peak and there was a growing awareness of the United States’ multicultural identities. From 1968 until 1988, Presidents Nixon, Ford, Carter, and Reagan all issued yearly proclamations, setting aside a week to honor Hispanic Americans. In 1987 U.S. Representative Esteban E. Torres of California proposed expanding the observance to cover its current 31-day time period.

Then in 1988, Senator Paul Simon submitted a similar bill that successfully passed Congress and was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on August 17, 1988. Then on September 13 1989 Oreseident George H.W. Bush, who had been a sponsor of the original Hispanic Heritage Week, while serving in the House in 1968, became the first president to declare the 31 days from September 15th to October 15th as Nation Hispanic Heritage Month.

It’s important to celebrate the amazing cultures and traditions during this month and make the most of it! Be proud of your culture and celebrate your traditions during this month of celebration. So to celebrate this month, Dana invites you to join a lunchtime Loteria on September 22nd and 29th to celebrate the cultures of

Hispanics. Anyone of any culture is welcome to participate and is encouraged to celebrate alongside their classmates and celebrate together.

That’s all for this article, stay tuned for more! Hope to see you all at the celebrations!