Ria Beri ‘27
EE Staff Writer
Every year, Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15 to October 15. September 15 sees the independence days of Guatemala, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua, with Mexico, Belize, and Chiles’ also falling within the month. Native meals are cooked, concerts are held, and festivals are thrown. As we celebrate this month, it is crucial to recognize the Hispanic figures who have made big contributions to society. Below, are a few of arguably the most influential Hispanics and Latinos in the areas of sports, entertainment, and science.
Astronaut Ellen Ochoa was born the granddaughter of Mexican immigrants. She attended Stanford University back in 1975, where she earned a doctorate in electrical engineering. Ochoa joined NASA in 1991 and, in 1993, became the first Hispanic woman to enter space despite astronomy being a field predominantly composed of white males. During her career, she came up with many inventions to make space easier to understand, including an optical inspection system, an optical object recognition method, and even a method for noise removal in images. Ochoa has spent nearly 1,000 hours studying space and bringing back useful information that help scientists understand our world. She was even the first astronaut to play a musical instrument in space, playing a flute in low-Earth orbit! Ochoa serves as a role model for people everywhere as her story shows that, despite one’s gender and race, anything can be achieved through hard work. During this month, we must not fail to forget everything that she has done for us in the area of science and technology.
Sports: Lionel Messi
Almost everyone has heard of soccer star Lionel Messi. Born in Argentina, he is arguably the GOAT of soccer. He currently holds 41 different world records and has helped score/scored 1,163 goals in his entire career. Messi plays for the Inter Miami team and was a forward on the Argentinian team that won the 2022 World Cup. He serves as captain on both teams and is regarded as one of the most humble soccer players in the world. He works with UNICEF to protect children’s rights and has even founded the Leo Messi Foundation, an organization that helps provide healthcare for children. During the Covid Pandemic, Messi donated $1 million to stop the spread of the virus and even took a 70% cut to his paycheck so that the FC Barcelona club could afford to pay all of its staff. He not only serves as a great athlete and source of entertainment, but as an inspiration too. Despite achieving such high athletic accomplishments, he remains humble and uses his time and money to help those in need. As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, it is people like him that we should celebrate.
Entertainment: Shakira
Widely recognized for her halftime performance during the Super Bowl of 2020, Shakira is a popular singer born in Colombia. Some of her biggest hits include: “Hips Don’t Lie” and “Waka Waka (This Time For Africa),” which was used as the official song of the 2010 World Cup. She has won 3 Grammy Awards and 12 Latin Grammy Awards, making her the most awarded Latin artist of all time. Shakira feels that her Latina origin has seeped into her music, helping spread Latina culture all over the world. “I am a fusion,” said the singer in an interview in 2002. “I am a fusion between black and white, between pop and rock, between cultures- between my Lebanese father and my mother’s Spanish blood, the Colombian folklore and Arab dance I love and American music.” She too supports UNICEF and is focused on bringing early childhood education to kids all over the globe. She is also the founder of Piez Descalzos, a foundation that provides education and nutrition to the thousands of Colombian children that live in poverty. Shakira’s efforts to spread Latino culture and help those in need back home deserve to be recognized as we pass through Hispanic Heritage month.
Well researched and a great writeup