Co-op celebrates Latinx Heritage Month

Latinx Heritage Month is celebrated in the U.S. from September 15 to October 15 – a time period significant because seven Latin American countries celebrate their independence in that span. In 1988, when President Ronald Reagan signed a bill to extend National Hispanic Heritage Week into a full month, National “Hispanic” Heritage Month was viewed as a step toward visibility, named after the new shared label, “Hispanic,” that had come into use to refer to Spanish and Latin American descendants living in the United States.

Recently, however, many have adopted the term “Latinx” rather than Hispanic or Latino to open this celebration to indigenous, Brazilian, and other non-Spanish speaking people, as well as to include the identities of non-binary, gender non-conforming and gender-expansive people.?

?Throughout the month, Co-op’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council is celebrating internally by sharing stories of Latinx culture from our colleagues, covering topics like holiday cuisine, identity, the celebration of Mexican Independence Day and how their culture and traditions are infused into many aspects of their lives.?