What is it like to be Latino in LA? (house, vs)

[kttam186290]

Originally Posted by iron_stick

I guess the keyword here is "common" and how it means something different to everyone. Personally, I've been in LA for a few years now and I lived in other places with diversity, and what I can say is that in SoCal most people I've met chose a significant other from an ethnic background identical or close to theirs. I'm sure they exist, but I can't say I've seen many White+Hispanic couples.

Plenty out in Santa Clarita, Simi Valley, Ventura, the Antelope Valley and the Inland Empire and Coachella Valley.


My brother is Latino and married to a woman of Swedish/Irish background. He lives in Palmdale. Seems like every third family on his block is that same composition.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by kttam186290

Plenty out in Santa Clarita, Simi Valley, Ventura, the Antelope Valley and the Inland Empire and Coachella Valley.


My brother is Latino and married to a woman of Swedish/Irish background. He lives in Palmdale. Seems like every third family on his block is that same composition.

We have about 50/50 intermarriage in my Latino family. And the half that marries Latinos marries other long-established American-born Latinos.

[CamaroGuy]

Originally Posted by iron_stick

I'm sure they exist, but I can't say I've seen many White+Hispanic couples.

That mix is much more common in Texas than California.

[kttam186290]

Originally Posted by Count David

We have about 50/50 intermarriage in my Latino family. And the half that marries Latinos marries other long-established American-born Latinos.

My brother in Palmdale has three kids. Two have red hair and light eyes, one looks more traditionally mestizo. His two red-headed kids have a Spanish surname. When he and my sister-in-law signed them up for school, they were asked if the kids qualified as "ESL" (English as Second Language) to which they both laughed.

Their kids go to school with little Nordic-looking kids with last names like "Rodriguez" and "Bermudez". My sister in law works with a full-blooded Latina/mestiza woman who's last name is "Walker" due to her marriage to an Anglo man. People where they work joke that my blonde/blue eyed sister-in-law has a Spanish surname and her very Latina co-worker has "Walker" as her surname.

In San Diego, my Latino cousins are all married to Anglo whites. This is all considered "normal" to most people who don't live inside isolated barrios.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by kttam186290

Their kids go to school with little Nordic-looking kids with last names like "Rodriguez" and "Bermudez". My sister in law works with a full-blooded Latina/mestiza woman who's last name is "Walker" due to her marriage to an Anglo man. People where they work joke that my blonde/blue eyed sister-in-law has a Spanish surname and her very Latina co-worker has "Walker" as her surname.

In San Diego, my Latino cousins are all married to Anglo whites. This is all considered "normal" to most people who don't live inside isolated barrios.

My son has my Spanish surname, and you wouldn't know him from any of the other white kids; let's just say he isn't ever mistaken for a Latino. He looks like what he is, a descendant of long removed Europeans mixed with Mexican.

In other words, he looks American.

[damba]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

Haitians are absolutely considered Latinos, and they are French-speaking.

This is not the case on many counts, regardless of any recent ‘LatinX’ literature you may have read.

Have you been around many Haitians personally? Only around 10% of Haitians are French speakers, btw. When I say French I mean educated French like your relatives in Paris (per our other thread) or mine in Provence. Haitians overwhelmingly speak Haitian creole. Yes, there is some knowledge of French with some using it but it’s creole that you will be using to communicate with the masses there.

[damba]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

People can be so stupid and illiterate. You can identify yourself however you would like to. This stuff is subjective, and my comments never suggested otherwise. The Census Bureau does not come to your door and put a gun to your head saying you have to be X or Y or Z. You fill out the form the way you want to.

I haven’t seen any of that, really, in this entire thread. You do make some interesting claims though.

Nobody is asserting that someone could not self-identify, btw.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by damba

This is not the case on many counts, regardless of any recent ‘LatinX’ literature you may have read.

Have you been around many Haitians personally? Only around 10% of Haitians are French speakers, btw. When I say French I mean educated French like your relatives in Paris (per our other thread) or mine in Provence. Haitians overwhelmingly speak Haitian creole. Yes, there is some knowledge of French with some using it but it’s creole that you will be using to communicate with the masses there.

I don't know what to say. Haiti is considered part of Latin America in every source I have ever encountered. The country is part of the Latin American Council. Everything that I have ever read about Haiti and Americans of Haitian descent left me with the impression that significantly more than 10% of Haitians spoke French. I have spoken French with two Haitians in the States, and they were facile à comprendre. No, I have not been around many Haitians, and I have never traveled to Haiti. I still don't see why Haitians shouldn't be considered Latino even if their mother tongue is a creolized French. Anyway, none of this has to do with the OP.

[iron_stick]

Another features I noticed among Latinos living in the LA area is that while most embrace their identity, there are some who stash it up like a teenager would stash a pack of cigarette to avoid getting in trouble with their mum. I've met a few individuals who bragged out how people "never believe they're Latino" because "they're so white", by their own account. Also, I've met quite a few claiming recent European ancestry every chance they have. However when you question them about it, those claims often turn out to be more or less speculative guesses. Interestingly enough, many aren't as vocal about their indigenous ancestry. My understanding is that many do that to build a more valued cultural and racial identity, and attempt to escape racism in the US and also in Latin American countries.

[sean1the1]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

I don't know what to say. Haiti is considered part of Latin America in every source I have ever encountered. The country is part of the Latin American Council. Everything that I have ever read about Haiti and Americans of Haitian descent left me with the impression that significantly more than 10% of Haitians spoke French. I have spoken French with two Haitians in the States, and they were facile à comprendre. No, I have not been around many Haitians, and I have never traveled to Haiti. I still don't see why Haitians shouldn't be considered Latino even if their mother tongue is a creolized French. Anyway, none of this has to do with the OP.

You don't have to say anything your initial p[point was accurate. A Latino is anyone from Latin America that means Haitians as well. They may not identify as such as we associate Latinos with Spanish speaking, but technically they are.