拉丁美洲对美国文化的影响?最好是英文版的.

拉丁美洲对美国文化的影响?最好是英文版的.
拉丁美洲对美国文化的影响?最好是英文版的.

拉丁美洲对美国文化的影响?最好是英文版的.
在美国,通常称说西班牙话的南美州人(拉丁美洲)为Hispanics
Hispanic influences on culture and politcs
Hispanics in the United States share many of the traditional values claimed by most Americans. They place high value on their families and on success through hard work. They are also proud of their Latin-American heritage. Many Hispanic Americans feel that they should not lose contact with their cultures or their language. Instead, they seek to be bicultural and bilingual. Many hope that their cultures will someday be accepted as being part of American culture.
Although many people consider them a single group, Hispanic Americans represent a rich variety of cultures. A single, common Hispanic culture does not exist. There are, however, important similarities among Hispanic groups, who together strongly influence U.S. culture.
Food is one area in which Hispanic influences are apparent in the United States. Mexican foods are especially popular. The taco, a folded tortilla filled with meat, cheese, and other ingredients, is as common in some areas as hamburgers and hot dogs. Other Mexican dishes, such as enchiladas, tamales, and tostadas, are also served in restaurants throughout the United States.
Entertainment and arts
Since the 1940's, the music and dances of Latin America have also "crossed over" into American culture. Mexican mariachi bands--small ensembles usually consisting of violins, guitars, and trumpets--have long enjoyed popularity in the United States. Dances and dance music from the Caribbean islands, especially Cuba, were first performed in American ballrooms in the late 1800's. Some popular Cuban dances have included the bomba, the cha-cha, the conga, the mambo, the rumba, and salsa. Much of the music and dancing was derived from the culture of African slaves who worked on West Indian sugar plantations from the early 1500's to the 1800's. The music has strong, syncopated (irregularly accented) rhythms. It features instruments of African and American Indian origin, including conga drums, claves, guiros, maracas, and marimbas.
Latin-American music has long been an important influence on the popular music of the United States. Since the 1950's, a number of Hispanic-American rock music performers have gained widespread popularity, including Ritchie Valens, Carlos Santana, Gloria Estefan, and the group Los Lobos. Traditional Latin music has also attracted a large audience in the United States. One of the most popular performers of traditional Latin music is Celia Cruz. Known as la Reina de la Salsa (the Queen of Salsa), Cruz has performed for more than 40 years in both Cuba and the United States.
A number of painters and writers have sought to capture the Hispanic American experience. Important Hispanic artists include John Valadez, Martin Ramirez, Frank Romero, and Arnaldo Roche. Tomas Rivera, Luis Valdez, and Heberto Padilla rank among the many Hispanic writers who have won distinction. Other major Hispanic American figures in the arts include architect Bernardo Fort-Brescia and fashion designers Adolfo and Oscar de la Renta.
Like other minority groups, Hispanic Americans have often been portrayed as stereotypes on radio and television and in movies and advertisements. Since the 1960's, however, TV shows, movies, and plays that deal more realistically with Hispanic characters have appealed to both Hispanic and non-Hispanic audiences. Hispanic-American actors are now able to play roles that previously would have been reserved for Anglo (English-speaking) actors. Successful Hispanic-American actors and actresses have included Jose Ferrer, Raul Julia, Rita Moreno, and Anthony Quinn.
Sports
Many Hispanics share in the American enthusiasm for sports, and a number of Hispanic athletes have become professional sports stars. Well-known Hispanic-American athletes include baseball greats Roberto Clemente, Jose Canseco, and Fernando Valenzuela; golfers Nancy Lopez and Lee Trevino; and jockeys Angel Cordero and Jorge Velasquez.
Holidays
Many Hispanic Americans observe the major holidays of their homelands in addition to U.S. holidays. Mexican Americans celebrate the anniversary of Mexico's independence from Spain on September 16. Cinco de Mayo, which commemorates Mexico's victory over an invading French army on May 5, 1862, is also a day of celebration among Mexican Americans. Puerto Ricans observe Constitution Day on July 25, the date on which Puerto Rico's constitution became effective in 1952. Cuban Americans celebrate Cuban Independence Day on May 20, the date Cuba gained its independence from Spain in 1898.
The United States observes National Hispanic Heritage Month each year from September 15 to October 15, when many Latin-American countries celebrate their independence. Besides Mexico, these countries include Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. Some cities with large Hispanic communities hold annual festivals featuring the arts and crafts, food, and music and dancing of Latin America. These festivals include Miami's nine-day Calle Ocho, held in March of each year, and the Fiesta de la Primavera, held in San Diego in May. Other Hispanic festivals are held at Christmas and Easter and on other religious holidays. One of the largest of these festivals is the nine-day Mexican Christmas festival of las posadas, which features songs and processions commemorating Mary and Joseph's search for an inn in Bethlehem.
Political influence
Hispanics are among the fastest-growing U.S. minority groups. But their political influence has increased at a much slower pace.
Until the 1960's, discrimination at the polls discouraged many Hispanics from registering to vote. Some states required the payment of a poll tax before a person was allowed to vote. The tax was intended to keep Hispanics, blacks, and other minorities--many of whom were too poor to afford the tax--from voting. In areas with large Hispanic populations, voting district boundaries were often drawn to scatter the Hispanic voters over several districts. This practice, called gerrymandering, held down the percentage of Hispanic voters within any one district.
Expanding influence
During the 1960's, four Mexican Americans won election to Congress and became champions of civil rights. They were Senator Joseph Montoya of New Mexico and Representatives Eligio de la Garza and Henry B. Gonzalez of Texas and Edward R. Roybal of California. In 1965, Congress enacted the Voting Rights Act, which outlawed the poll tax.
President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed several Hispanic Americans to high government posts during the 1960's. For example, Vicente T. Ximenes became chairman of the President's Cabinet Committee on Mexican-American Affairs. Johnson made Hector P. Garcia a member of the United States delegation to the United Nations and appointed Raul H. Castro United States ambassador to El Salvador.
The Chicano movement
In spite of the success of a growing number of Hispanic Americans, many others became more resentful about their problems. Among Mexican Americans in particular, such feelings found expression in the Chicano, or "brown power," movement, which was founded in the 1960's. Although the origin of the word Chicano is uncertain, some Mexican Americans have considered the term a negative label for their ethnic group. But by founding the Chicano movement, young Mexican Americans gave the term a meaning that suggested ethnic pride.
One of the foremost Hispanic Americans to reflect this new ethnic pride was Cesar Chavez, a labor leader who began to organize California grape pickers in 1962. In 1963, Reies Lopez Tijerina founded the Alianza Federal de Mercedes (Federal Alliance of Land Grants) in New Mexico. This group fought to win compensation for descendants of families whose lands had been seized illegally. Another leader was Rodolfo Gonzales, who founded the Crusade for Justice in Denver in 1965. This group worked to provide social services and to develop job opportunities for Mexican Americans. In 1970, Jose Angel Gutierrez helped establish La Raza Unida, a political party based in Texas.
Despite these events, many Hispanics still felt excluded from the political process. Voter registration continued to lag because many Hispanics believed voting could not effectively change their lives.
Growing number of elected officials
Since 1980, Hispanic attitudes toward politics have changed. Voter registration drives added hundreds of thousands of Hispanics to the rolls. Political activists challenged gerrymandering in a number of lawsuits. The federal courts agreed that voting district boundaries had been purposely drawn to split up Hispanic communities. The courts ordered that the district lines be redrawn to better represent established communities. With the new boundaries in place, more candidates supported by Hispanics were elected to office.
In 1980, there were six Hispanic Americans serving in the U.S. Congress. By the late 1990's, that number had increased to 20. In addition, hundreds of Hispanic Americans were elected as state officials, mayors, county and municipal officials, and school board members. These officials included former Miami mayor Maurice Ferre, of Puerto Rican descent, the first Hispanic mayor of a large U.S. city; former mayor of San Antonio Henry G. Cisneros, the first Mexican-American mayor of a major U.S. city; Xavier Suarez, Miami's first Cuban-born mayor; Mayor Federico F. Pena of Denver; and Governor Bob Martinez of Florida. Despite these gains, however, Hispanic Americans still accounted for less than 2 percent of U.S. elected officials in the late 1990's.
In 1988, Lauro Cavazos became the first Hispanic Cabinet member when President Ronald Reagan appointed him secretary of education. Reagan's successor, President George Bush, kept Cavazos in this post. Cavazos remained secretary of education until 1990. Other presidential appointments since 1980 include Katherine Ortega, U.S. treasurer under Reagan; Manuel Lujan, Jr., interior secretary under Bush; Henry G. Cisneros, secretary of housing and urban development under President Bill Clinton; and Federico F. Pena, secretary of transportation and secretary of energy under Clinton. In 1990, Antonia C. Novello became the nation's first Hispanic surgeon general.
http://www.worldbook.com/features/cinco/html/influences.htm