National Hispanic Heritage Month

“Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.

The observation started in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week under President Lyndon Johnson and was expanded by President Ronald Reagan in 1988 to cover a 30-day period starting on September 15 and ending on October 15. It was enacted into law on August 17, 1988, on the approval of Public Law 100-402.

The day of September 15 is significant because it is the anniversary of independence for Latin American countries Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.  In addition, Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on September 16 and September 18, respectively.  Also Dia de la Raza, which is October 12, falls within this 30 day period.

How California Got Its Name

The legend of Queen Califia has inspired discovery since it was written by Garci Rodriquez de Montalvo in 1510. Hernan de Cortes quoted from the story in his request to the King of Spain in 1524 to launch an expedition in search of the gold laden kingdom. Soon after Cortes landed on the shores of what is now called Baja California, European maps began describing an island off the western coast of North America called California. However, the African influence on the beginning of California was more than fictional.  Cortes took 300 African conquistadors along with him on the journey and their descendants helped populate the Spanish province.

When San Francisco’s grandest Hotel, The Mark Hopkins, was erected on Nob Hill in 1926, the origins of California were celebrated by Mayor Maynard Dixon and Frank Von Sloun in a series of nine murals placed in the Room of the Dons.  From the text of “The Deeds of Esplandian,” by Garcia Montalvo, an Island populated by Beauteous African Amazon women  ruled Califia. Linguists postulate that the name Calafia was likely formed under Muslim rule of Andalusia (Spain) from the Arabic word Khalifa (religious state ruler) and known as caliph in English and califa in Spanish. These murals depict the inhabitants as African.  Cortes’ expedition to find this island and bring back its treasures ended in the discovery of the peninsula of Baja California.

Los Angeles One Of California’s Crown Jewel Cities

Los Angeles has a unique multiracial history of its own.  Historian Jack Forbes, identifies that 40 percent or 11 of the Mexican families that comprise the beginnings of the puebla that eventually became Los Angeles were Black.  The Portola Expedition of 1769 included a soldier named Santiago de la Cruz Pico, whose mulatto grandson Pio De Jesus Pico (1801-1894), would become Governor under Mexican rule of California and historically the largest landowner in California history.  Pico and other family members’ ownership included Simi Valley, Camp Pendleton, Old Town San Diego, UCSD, Coronado Island and he also built the first three story building in downtown Los Angeles. Pico boulevard is named after Pio Pico.

In 1781 Captain Fernando Rivera y Moncada, escorted settlers, forty four in number, 26 Black, 16 Indian, and 2 Whites, to what would become known as Los Angeles.  Luis Quintero, son of an enslaved African and his wife Maria were among that group.  Luis, a tailor, his descendants included Maria Rita Valdez Villa, who received the original land grant we now know as Beverly Hills. Another descendant, Eugene Biscailuz would become sheriff of Los Angeles County and he was founder of the California Highway Patrol.  Juan Francisco Reyes, a mulatto is acknowledged as the first Black Mayor or Hispanic Alcalde of Los Angeles from 1793 to 1795.  His great-grandson, Isidro Reyes Jr. is the first grantee of what we now call the San Fernando Valley.

The Los Angeles South Chamber of Commerce Education Department is joining historians in celebrating the diversity of South Los Angeles and its sister communities throughout greater Los Angeles in celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month.

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