Hispanic/Latin@
Cesar Chavez:
March 31, 1927 - April 23, 1993
Labor leader and civil rights activist
He was born on March 31, 1927 near Yuma, Arizona. Chavez’s family lost their home and farm because of the Great Depression. He and his family moved to California where they then became migrant farm workers. Cesar was discriminated against at school for speaking Spanish and quit school after the 8th grade. He then worked in the fields full time in order to support his family. When Cesar Chavez turned eighteen, he then joined the Navy and served in the Pacific during World War II. After serving, he dedicated his life to improving the lives of others. In 1962, he founded the National Farm Workers Association that later became UFW, the United Farm Workers. He also organized farm workers to register to vote and further their education. Chavez achieved the first health benefits for farm workers and their families. In 1965, he created the first union contracts requiring periods of rest, clean drinking water, hand washing stations and protective clothing against pesticide exposure for farm workers. Cesar Chavez died in 1993, and the year after his death, President Clinton presented the Medal of Freedom to his honor.
Joseph Hernandez:
May 26, 1788 - June 8, 1857
American Politician/Member of Congress
Joseph Marion Hernandez was the first Hispanic Member of Congress and the first Territorial Delegate to represent the state of Florida. Hernandez was born May 26, 1788 in St. Augustine, Spanish Florida. He was the third of ten children. Joseph Marion Hernandez bridged the state’s cultural and governmental transition from a Spanish colony to a U.S. territory. He also earned, as well as lost, a fortune that included three plantations and numerous slaves. Hernandez’s role in the First Seminole War remains ambiguous, but he did benefit from the conflict and received more land grants from the Spanish government. He was sworn into the House on January 3, 1823 and was well qualified to be a part of Florida’s transition from Spanish to U.S. rule. During the 1820s, he established himself as a big territorial planter and produced some of the biggest cash crops in Florida. These crops included sugarcane and cotton. Hernandez was bilingual, an established planter, and well-known soldier who had fought in two major wars to determine Florida’s territorial status. His first objective was to facilitate the verification of land claims from the Spanish government to the U.S. He returned to the battlefield during the Second Seminole War, which was 1835-1842. In 1836, Hernandez played a major role in the conflict, which he helped to recover slaves and prevented them from fleeing towards the enemy lines. Joseph Hernandez died on June 8, 1857 in Cuba.
Jennifer Lopez:
July 24, 1969 - present
Actress and Activist
Jennifer Lopez was born on July 24, 1969 in Bronx, New York. Jennifer Lopez is an actress and singer, but has also made some major contributions to the U.S. society. Lopez teamed up with the organization Amnesty International in order to create a bilingual website that was aimed at raising awareness about the Mexican femicide. She launched this website after she learned about how 350 young women were killed in Ciudad Juarez and in Chihuahua since the year 1993. Lopez, along with Marc Anthony both made large donations to the Children’s Health Fund’s Operation Assist after the Hurricane Katrina disaster. She also participated in a photoshoot to help raise awareness for DKMS, and she also benefitted the MusiCares MAP Fund, which has a pool of resources set aside to address the addiction and the recovery needs of members in the music community. She benefitted this organization by donating an item to the watchmaker Nixon to have it made into a watch. Jennifer Lopez has also helped to create The Lopez Family Foundation. This foundation is an organization that is mainly dedicated to improving the health and the well-being of women and children. The foundation is partnered with the Children’s Hospital of Montefiore in the Bronx. With this partnership, they hope to be able to create a Center for a Healthy Childhood, which would then lead to promote public health messages and create programs that focus on nutrition and physical activity.
Linda Chavez-Thompson:
June 17, 1947 - present
Union leader & Executive VP of AFL-CIO
Linda Chavez-Thompson was born on June 17, 1947 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She helped to change the role of Hispanics in America. Chavez believes that all Hispanics and various other minorities should be awarded advancement for their own achievements and not because of their race. Linda Chavez grew up in a middle-class family with a Anglo-American mother and a Hispanic father. Chavez worked with the National Education Association, which is the largest teachers’ union in the country. She served as a consultant, which is a person that gives expert advice on education to the government. She was also an active member of the Democratic National Committee. She was an author of several series of articles that urged there to be a return to “traditional values” in the American schools. In 1985, Chavez joined the Republican party because of feeling a lack of support with the Democrats. Chavez ran for a Republican in senatorial race. President George W. Bush nominated Chavez for the Secretary of Labor award, but Chavez later withdrew her nomination. Overall, she has emerged as one of the most influential figures that has fought for civil rights and educational reforms. She has become a role model for many individuals in the Hispanic community, which later inspires more politicians in the minority group to join the Republican party.
March 31, 1927 - April 23, 1993
Labor leader and civil rights activist
He was born on March 31, 1927 near Yuma, Arizona. Chavez’s family lost their home and farm because of the Great Depression. He and his family moved to California where they then became migrant farm workers. Cesar was discriminated against at school for speaking Spanish and quit school after the 8th grade. He then worked in the fields full time in order to support his family. When Cesar Chavez turned eighteen, he then joined the Navy and served in the Pacific during World War II. After serving, he dedicated his life to improving the lives of others. In 1962, he founded the National Farm Workers Association that later became UFW, the United Farm Workers. He also organized farm workers to register to vote and further their education. Chavez achieved the first health benefits for farm workers and their families. In 1965, he created the first union contracts requiring periods of rest, clean drinking water, hand washing stations and protective clothing against pesticide exposure for farm workers. Cesar Chavez died in 1993, and the year after his death, President Clinton presented the Medal of Freedom to his honor.
Joseph Hernandez:
May 26, 1788 - June 8, 1857
American Politician/Member of Congress
Joseph Marion Hernandez was the first Hispanic Member of Congress and the first Territorial Delegate to represent the state of Florida. Hernandez was born May 26, 1788 in St. Augustine, Spanish Florida. He was the third of ten children. Joseph Marion Hernandez bridged the state’s cultural and governmental transition from a Spanish colony to a U.S. territory. He also earned, as well as lost, a fortune that included three plantations and numerous slaves. Hernandez’s role in the First Seminole War remains ambiguous, but he did benefit from the conflict and received more land grants from the Spanish government. He was sworn into the House on January 3, 1823 and was well qualified to be a part of Florida’s transition from Spanish to U.S. rule. During the 1820s, he established himself as a big territorial planter and produced some of the biggest cash crops in Florida. These crops included sugarcane and cotton. Hernandez was bilingual, an established planter, and well-known soldier who had fought in two major wars to determine Florida’s territorial status. His first objective was to facilitate the verification of land claims from the Spanish government to the U.S. He returned to the battlefield during the Second Seminole War, which was 1835-1842. In 1836, Hernandez played a major role in the conflict, which he helped to recover slaves and prevented them from fleeing towards the enemy lines. Joseph Hernandez died on June 8, 1857 in Cuba.
Jennifer Lopez:
July 24, 1969 - present
Actress and Activist
Jennifer Lopez was born on July 24, 1969 in Bronx, New York. Jennifer Lopez is an actress and singer, but has also made some major contributions to the U.S. society. Lopez teamed up with the organization Amnesty International in order to create a bilingual website that was aimed at raising awareness about the Mexican femicide. She launched this website after she learned about how 350 young women were killed in Ciudad Juarez and in Chihuahua since the year 1993. Lopez, along with Marc Anthony both made large donations to the Children’s Health Fund’s Operation Assist after the Hurricane Katrina disaster. She also participated in a photoshoot to help raise awareness for DKMS, and she also benefitted the MusiCares MAP Fund, which has a pool of resources set aside to address the addiction and the recovery needs of members in the music community. She benefitted this organization by donating an item to the watchmaker Nixon to have it made into a watch. Jennifer Lopez has also helped to create The Lopez Family Foundation. This foundation is an organization that is mainly dedicated to improving the health and the well-being of women and children. The foundation is partnered with the Children’s Hospital of Montefiore in the Bronx. With this partnership, they hope to be able to create a Center for a Healthy Childhood, which would then lead to promote public health messages and create programs that focus on nutrition and physical activity.
Linda Chavez-Thompson:
June 17, 1947 - present
Union leader & Executive VP of AFL-CIO
Linda Chavez-Thompson was born on June 17, 1947 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She helped to change the role of Hispanics in America. Chavez believes that all Hispanics and various other minorities should be awarded advancement for their own achievements and not because of their race. Linda Chavez grew up in a middle-class family with a Anglo-American mother and a Hispanic father. Chavez worked with the National Education Association, which is the largest teachers’ union in the country. She served as a consultant, which is a person that gives expert advice on education to the government. She was also an active member of the Democratic National Committee. She was an author of several series of articles that urged there to be a return to “traditional values” in the American schools. In 1985, Chavez joined the Republican party because of feeling a lack of support with the Democrats. Chavez ran for a Republican in senatorial race. President George W. Bush nominated Chavez for the Secretary of Labor award, but Chavez later withdrew her nomination. Overall, she has emerged as one of the most influential figures that has fought for civil rights and educational reforms. She has become a role model for many individuals in the Hispanic community, which later inspires more politicians in the minority group to join the Republican party.