The Making of a Latino Ethnic Identity

The Latino press and Latino leaders claim that their group may well be the political movement of the 1980s. Estimates show that by the year 2005 those classified by the census as Hispanics will outnumber blacks to become
the largest minority in the United States —politically, socially, and culturally—a demographic event of great significance. Within the group there are visions of a golden epoch where “now that we have the numbers” it will be easy to achieve greater political representation and national prominence: to become, in the words of the League of United Latin American
Citizens (LULAC) president, Ruben Bonilla, “a truly visible political force.” The bold ones even envision transforming the U...