The Long History of Hispanic and Latino Culture in the U.S.

Key Takeaways

From MoMA to El Paso

Diego Rivera, the great Mexican modernist painter and muralist, had his first major U.S. exhibition at New York City's Museum of Modern Art in 1931–32. The exhibition broke attendance records and introduced American audiences to Rivera's monumental depictions of Mexican history and working-class life. Two years later, his political convictions collided with his wealthy patrons when the Rockefeller family ordered the destruction of his mural, Man at the Crossroads, that John D. Rockefeller had commissioned after Rivera refused to remove an image of Vladimir Lenin.

Rivera's story is one way Mexican culture entered American consciousness: through what might be called the front door. Americans encountered Rivera's work through museums, institutions, and art critics that act as arbiters and gatekeepers. But when you get right down to it— taking absolutely nothing from Rivera's powerful vision and talent—life in the U.S. has been enriched far more by the culture bubbling up in the art, music, fashion, and the creative lives of ordinary people.

Later in the same decade that saw Rivera explode on the U.S. art scene, young Mexican American men in El Paso and eventually across the Southwest began adopting distinctive ways of dressing, speaking, and carrying themselves. Their zoot suits, swing-inspired style, and Mexican Spanish slang called caló helped define the burgeoning pachuco identity. What began as young people staking a claim to their own autonomy and cultural independence in the face of pressure to assimilate would, over the decades that followed, inform the political, artistic, and social evolution of Hispanic and Latino culture in the U.S.

Mexican and Mexican American culture has shaped the United States in ways both celebrated and very much under the radar.

A Few Things You Might Not Know About Hispanic Influence on America

• During the American Revolution, the governor of Spanish Louisiana, Bernardo de Gálvez (for whom Galveston is named), led military campaigns against the British along the Gulf Coast to secure supply lines that were vital to the American war effort.
• Spanish silver dollars, many minted in Mexico, circulated widely in colonial North America and influenced the development of American currency.
• Our language has been unquestionably enriched: Words such as rodeo, corral, and lasso reflect the ranching traditions that Spanish and Mexican settlers brought to the region. But the influence goes far beyond those: hurricane and tornado, barbecue and avocado, alligator and mosquito, patio and plaza all derive from Spanish usage in North and South America. What is more, many of those listed (barbecue, avocado), as well as others not listed (chocolate, coyote), originate in indigenous languages of the Americas.
• Spanish place names are everywhere: cities like Los Angeles, San Antonio, San Francisco, and Santa Fe, rivers like Rio Grande, Frio, Pecos, and Nueces, not to mention the states of Montana, Colorado, Nevada, California and Florida.

As you can see, Hispanics and Latinos have helped shape this country from its earliest days.

But perhaps the most interesting part of this story is not simply how much Hispanic culture has influenced the United States. It's how culture gets made and shared in so many different ways. Some cultural traditions are promoted by institutions, and others develop more organically through the daily lives of families, neighborhoods, and communities.

Consider Día de los Muertos. Its modern observance combines Indigenous Mexican traditions with Catholic practices introduced during Spanish colonization. Over generations, people created something that was neither entirely one thing nor the other, but a living tradition of remembrance, family, and cultural expression.

The same kind of mixing happens everywhere. Cultures borrow, adapt, resist, and reinvent. Sometimes they do so in a museum. Sometimes they do so in a backyard, a dance hall, or a garage where someone is transforming an old car into a lowrider. And sometimes, as with Rivera's murals or the pachuco movement, cultural expression becomes a way of saying: We are here. We have our own history, our own creativity, and our own ideas about who we are.

That's one reason Hispanic Heritage Month is worth celebrating. Not because Hispanic culture is some colorful addition to an otherwise complete American story, but because it has been part of that story for centuries—and continues to shape what America looks and sounds like today.

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at the Library

Come experience some of that creativity and cultural richness at our Hispanic Heritage Month Fiesta, featuring mariachi performances, children's authors, and family activities.

Fiesta @ High Meadows

Saturday, October 3, 12:00 - 5:00 p.m

4500 Aldine Mail Route
Houston TX 77039
Get Directions

FREE for the whole family!

• Children's book authors Juliana Javierre and Xavier Garza, presented by Arte Público
• Mariachi singer Eduardo Treviño, known for his appearance on America’s Got Talent and his time with legendary group La Mafia
• Lowriders 
• Roving clowns
• Hands-on activities and crafts
• Tasty treats
• Don't leave early! After Fiesta, High Meadows presents Lucha Libre! Six luchadores will take to the ring for three action-packed matches, complete with a DJ and bilingual host.

Visit the Fiesta @ High Meadows event page for more information

From the Collection

El Norte

Diego Rivera

Diego Rivera

Chicano Popular Culture

Zoot Suit Riots

Lowrider Space

From Cocinas to Lucha Libre Ringsides