Hispanic Heritage 2015 Background Information, Lesson Plans, and Internet Resources for the Secondary Classroom County Public Schools Department of Social Sciences September 15 – October 15, 2015 THE SCHOOL BOARD OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA Ms. Perla Tabares Hantman, Chair Dr. Lawrence S. Feldman, Dr. Dorothy Bendross-Mindingall Ms. V. Castillo Dr. Wilbert “Tee” Holloway Dr. Martin Karp Ms. Lubby Navarro Dr. Pérez Ms. Raquel A. Regalado Logan Schroeder Stephens Student Advisor
Fast Facts – The Hispanic Population of the United States Facts: The Census describes Hispanic or Latino ethnicity as Hispanic people are the largest minority in the United States. Only Mexico has a larger Hispanic population than the United States. As of 2013, are an estimated 54 million Hispanic people in the United States. That is just over 17% of the total U.S. population and a 2.1% increase over the previous year. By 2060, the Census Bureau projects that there will be almost and that they will comprise 31% of the total population. Two-thirds of the Hispanic people in the United States are of Mexican background, according to 2013 Census estimates. California is the state with the largest Hispanic population by 2013 Census estimates -- 14.7 million. But New Mexico has the highest Hispanic percentage of the state population -- 47.3 percent. These are the states where based on 2013 Census estimates: Arizona, 30.3%; California, 38.4%; New Mexico, 47.3%; and Texas, 38.4. There are more than one million Hispanic residents in eight U.S. states - Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New York and Texas.
Amendment. This amendment allowed the United States to intervene in Cuba’s internal affairs when U.S. interests were threatened. As a result of the war, the United States also acquired the island of Puerto Rico from Spain. Beginning 1900, U.S. companies also worked to increase their trade with, and investment in, Latin America. These companies introduced new work methods to Latin America and provided products that many local people wanted to buy. At the same time, they challenged established ways of life and created resentment among farmers, landowners, and workers who felt that U.S. companies benefited at their expense. During the 1920’s and 1930’s, the United States routinely dispatched naval forces to Central America in an effort to protect its business interests there. This practice became known as gunboat diplomacy. The presence of foreign companies, along with such policies as gunboat diplomacy, contributed to a deepening sense of nationalism within Latin America. Political circumstances in the early to mid-1900’s. As the second century of Latin American independence dawned, much had changed in the region. Leaders had established national governments, and economies had expanded. Such cities as Buenos Aires, Lima, Mexico City, and Rio de Janeiro had grown dramatically. These developments contributed to rising social tensions among Latin Americans. Workers in mines and factories and on haciendas wanted higher wages and better working conditions. Urban, middle-class professionals demanded public education and government services. Peasants in the countryside were losing land to railroads and large landowners. And new domestic industries wanted economic protections from foreign competition. In Mexico, such tensions came to a head in 1910, when a liberal politician named Francisco Madero declared himself in rebellion against the government of President Porfirio Díaz. In the interest of modernization, Díaz had built foreign-owned railroads, expanded the size of the government, divided Amerindian lands, and invited U.S. companies to operate in Mexico. Although these policies improved the economy, they hurt the interests of many Mexicans. Madero’s rebellion set off what came to be known as the Mexican Revolution. Two prominent revolutionaries were Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa. Zapata led Amerindians in southern Mexico who wanted to hold communal lands and govern their own communities. Villa led agricultural workers and miners who sought better working conditions, higher wages, and fair treatment from employers, many of which were U.S. companies.
• Mary Weismantel, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University. Map of Latin America Lesson Plans and Classroom Activities for the Secondary Classroom Hispanic Heritage and Culture - Middle and Senior High School Hispanic Heritage Travel Brochures - Middle and Senior High School Notable Hispanics – Middle and Senior High School Hispanic Population Growth – Middle School Analyzing Graphs - Hispanic Population Growth – Senior High School Community Survey - Hispanics by the Numbers – Middle and Senior High School