Recently, politicians have been slandering and stereotyping the Hispanic culture with false information, such as Hispanics being viewed as criminals. It has led non-Hispanics to view the Hispanic culture in a negative way because of these false stereotypes. However, those that are not fortunate enough to be Hispanic don’t know the true meaning of being Hispanic.

Through various different cultural events, such as Dia de los Muertos, the Hispanic culture brings everyone together, no matter where they’re from. Whether it be the food, music, or language, there’s something special about the Hispanic culture.

Ruth Olivos, our school counselor, shared her thoughts on the Hispanic culture.

 “I feel like the Hispanic culture is an actual culture. I feel like we have actual traditions. Ours is more open and we have amazing things like having stuff in 4th Street and Dia de los Muertos. Having all those events all the time brings the culture into the community and into the people. We’re proud and we’re not afraid to show our culture through the events in the city,” Olivos said.

Despite the vibrant community, many people still see Hispanics as criminals, according to senior David Juarez.

“The Hispanic community is amazing because everyone always helps each other out. We push each other to do better even though other people view us as criminals. It’s a stigma that should be erased because not all of us are like that,” said Juarez.

Sophomore Vivian Mai, who is Vietnamese, shared her thoughts on the Hispanic culture. Although MCHS is a predominantly Hispanic school, she has an appreciation for the culture.

“I believe that there is a strong connection within Hispanic culture as compared to other cultures. The most common example I normally see is the fact that most Hispanic kids actually talk to their family. That’s not the case with many Asian families. I’d describe the Hispanic culture as fun and easy going. I know that most Hispanic parents won’t hit their kids for not having a perfect GPA, but it’s a problem in many Asian cultures. I believe that the Hispanic culture is under appreciated. Sometimes politics focus only on the problematic people of a culture and forget that they’re actually people. The stigma of ‘illegal immigrants’ and ‘gangsters’ should be erased. I think that the Hispanic culture is great. I don’t know of a culture with higher moral standards and almost every Hispanic person I know is amazing,” said Mai.