Question
Should I say Hispanic or Latino?
Answer
There's often a big discussion in the United States about whether to use the term Hispanic or Latino. The term Hispanic was coined by the U.S. government in 1970 for census purposes and it has nothing to do with ethnicity. It was specially designed for people that speak Spanish. The problem with that is that not all Spanish-speaking people are Latinos. For example, people from Spain are included because they speak Spanish, but not people from Brazil because Brazilians speak Portuguese. The term Latino is more encompassing because it refers to people of Latin American origin or with cultural ties to Latin America. This includes Brazil but excludes Spain. In general, people prefer the term Latino rather than Hispanic. Why did I mention that? Because it's a sensitive issue, and in many cases, Latinos are socialized not to provoke conflict, or to avoid conflict. They might hear you refer to them as a Hispanic family. Inside they might be upset, but they're not going to tell you that it upsets them. In general, Latino is more broadly accepted. You will find more people that accept the term Latino than the term Hispanic. Also, you can just refer to their country of origin. For example, this is Mrs. Rodriguez from Venezuela or this family is from Puerto Rico, or these are my Argentinian preschoolers. When you don't know how to refer to a family, you can always refer to their country of origin. However, Latino will generally be more accepted. The best practice is to ask parents how they want to be addressed or use nationality when introducing them.
This Ask the Expert is an edited excerpt from the course, Cultural Awareness in Working with Families, by Anarella Cellitti, PhD.
