While in NYC to see my daughter perform in a student play at Sarah Lawrence College in NYC, I got the chance to see John Leguizamo’s one-man show on Broadway: Latin History for Morons. I liked it, although I am pretty sure I saw John on an off day. He seemed a little low in energy. Live theater occasionally has bad days, and it must be especially hard for one-man shows. I can honestly say I learned a few things from his show, which spent a great deal of time discussing details of the catastrophic slaughter of Native Americans. I saw the show with my wife and daughter, and would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in watching a live narrative of the history of Latino-Americans. This is Leguizamo’s fifth show on Broadway, and while he is a bit old for the cheap sex jokes, he is nonetheless a remarkable thought leader and performer. Latin History for Morons completes its Broadway run in February 2018.
Latinos are the youngest demographic in America, with the highest workforce participation rate. We are young and we are not afraid of hard work. Our dedication to God, family, and country is of the highest level. We contribute a lot to this country, but I’m not afraid to say, we are still vastly underachieving as a community.
I think most Latinos would agree that at our core, we are a generous people. If a member of our family is in need, Latinos as a rule, won’t hesitate to help financially. Family is central to Hispanic culture: our generosity has few limits. Maybe that explains why when it comes to making political donations and writing checks in support of actual philanthropic activities, Latinos come up short….When I interviewed Barack Obama last year at NAHREP at L’ATTITUDE, I pressed him about politicians not prioritizing issues that are important to Latino voters, he politely pushed back by saying…
We hear frequently how Latinos are not a monolithic community. In other words, we are not all the same. We come from different countries, have a variety of political views, and even eat different foods. I get all of that, but I also think focusing constantly on our differences versus our similarities undermines our political and economic power as a community...