Any other Hispanics in NC other than Mexican? (Greensboro, Winston-Salem: new home, groceries)

[jcaranda]

Yes there are other Hispanics in NC besides Mexicans. I myself am Honduran (half). The majority are Mexicans...everytime I tell someone I'm Latino they doubt it because I look white. They have the stereotype that all Latinos are dark skinned b/c the majority of Latinos (Mexicans) who live here are darker. In my small town, I know Mexicans, one Guatemalan family, a few Honduran families, one Cuban family, one Puerto Rican family, one Dominican family, one Costa Rican, one Colombian family and one Panamanian. The majority of Latinos though are overwhelmingly Mexican.

[jcaranda]

marcomeneses...I live near Selma and yeah, there are a lot of Hondurans there! My dad, who's from Honduras always hangs out there...there is even a local Honduran restaurant...Selma seems to be a haven for many Hondurans.

As for Cuban restaurants, I live part time in Charlotte and I have eaten at a good Cuban restaurant there called "Taste of Havana" on Albemarle Road. I think there is some Cuban restaurants in Raleigh also, near my other home. Just do a google search of Cuban restaurants in Raleigh,NC and I think a couple pop up.

As for stereotypes of Hispanics/Latinos I have dealt with a lot of them. I'm half Honduran and since I look completely "white" with green eyes, almost black hair and light skin, everyone assumes I'm white and not in the least bit Hispanic even though my last name screams "Hispanic." I've had people say to me, "I didn't know you were Mexican?", "Does your dad speak English?", "You're not dark skinned I would have never guessed?", "Your daddy's from Mexico?" One time I was at church and we were having a luncheon and it happened to have quesadillas. I said I hated Mexican food and the lady behind me said, "but isn't that your heritage?" I said no, I'm not Mexican and she replied, "but isn't it all the same?" I wanted to hit her!!! I told her that the food from Honduras, the food my dad cooks, is not at all spicy and is VERY different from Mexico.
Also, having lived in North Carolina my entire life, unfortunately, people here tend to classify all Hispanics as Mexicans. I constantly hear people talking about "illegals" and how they need to be deported...if only they knew I was Hispanic and that my dad was originally an illegal immigrant...haha...maybe they would shut their mouths...I just play dumb so I can hear what the locals really think of Hispanics...and many of the times they say horrible stuff about them!

[Southlander]

Natives from Guatemala...Honduras...other Central American countries. But as a group, they are referred to as "Mexican," even though they may speak only a little Spanish.

[ddv0569]

if anyone has a problem w/ the influx of people into the USA who are entering illegally, the complaint should be focused on our government and business owners. this has been a problem for years and yet no serious efforts have been made to stem the tide. but if we are to have an honest debate about this issue let's not focus ONLY on latinos. while latinos may be the largest group, they aren't the only ones. i know someone who met a woman online and married her w/i 6 months of when they first met. she was living in canada and came to USA w/ her son under false pretenses. the child required special care and medication and automatically was entitled to all kinds of social services because of his condition. America is definitely not perfect but we tout ourselves as the land of opportunity. despite all of the disadvantages immigrants have when coming to a new land i think it's quite remarkable how they manage to carve out niches for themselves and find success.

as far as being required to speak english, i agree with that. in addition to requiring immigrants to speak english, we should also mandate schools teach students at least one foreign language (let the parents have a choice of 4 or 5 different languages). our economy is increasingly becoming a global economy and you are at an extreme disadvantage in the marketplace when you only know one language. my daughter goes to school w/ a few classmates that emigrated from Europe & South Africa and those kids know SEVERAL languages.

for the last 10 years, or so, i have been reading and hearing all sorts of statistics that indicate latinos/hispanics will be the largest racial group in the USA at some point in the near future. by us refusing to embrace these immigrants, we are only limiting our opportunities and avenues to find success for ourselves. it's being shortsighted and narrow-minded.

the government hasn't dealt with the issue, businesses encourage the influx so we must learn to live with the consequences and figure out how to thrive with them. these people are here and they're here to stay. there won't be any mass deportations or incarcerations.

not only is it the responsibilty of the immigrants to assimilate but it is our responsibilty to help them accomplish that end instead of aiding in their isolation.

[Yac]

Lets try and not turn this into another "bash illegals" thread. we have enough in the Immigration forum.
Yac.

[angorra]

I just moved to NC and I am from Uruguay. Anybody from there or any other parts of S. America?

[angorra]

Is anybody here from Uruguay or Argentina? I was born in Uruguay and lived in Argentina. Moved to Cary from Omaha, NE with my spouse and young son.

[doom1001]

I'm in Miami and with the prices of housing in Miami getting out of control you seem to hear everywhere you go of many people moving to NC.So I would figure the Cuban population has to be seriously increasing!!!!

[CharlotteBoundfromMiami]

I'm in Miami, too. My husband is Bolivian, but I think he looks more Filipino than Latino....

We're going to be putting our house in Westchester (Miami) on the market in the next few days, and PRAYING to God and all the saints that it sells....eventually, w/o dropping the bottom out of the price...

I'm scared, but ready to do whatever it takes to get the hell out of S. Florida.

[backtofla]

nc demographics must be changing since everyone is moving to nc.