John Leguizamo’s Remarks About Latin Identity Might Cause More Harm than Good

*Opinion* On Sunday, John Leguizamo took his opinions to his Instagram to talk about how Spaniards and Portuguese are not Latin. His speech was part of this move trying to relabel the word “Latino” which, for decades, has encompassed people who came from Spanish or Portuguese-speaking countries in the USA, regarding their race, skin color, or country of origin.  However, his remarks could cause more fragmentation in an already fragmented community that needs to stand united and strong to be taken seriously in Hollywood.

Amidst the cancellation of Gordita Chronicles, Batgirl, and the latest slap in our face, James Franco cast as Fidel Castro, it is clear that Hollywood doesn’t take us seriously.  As my father used to say, “la unión hace la fuerza,” and the problem our community has is that instead of being united and finding a common ground, we keep finding ways to separate ourselves.

“Portuguese are not Latin nor Spaniards; they are white peoples from Europe! Latin people are from Latin America and 90% of us are mixed race! And that is why we are discriminated against,” reads the caption on one of his posts. The problem with that statement is that it’s a contradiction. The word “Latin” comes from the Romans who colonized all of Southern Europe, and therefore all those countries and their languages that formed afterward are, by definition, Latin. And if Latin America is named as it is because it was colonized by the people who lived in what is now part of Spain (Spain as a country wasn’t formed until 1556, so technically the Spanish didn’t conquer or colonize anyone, but the reign of Castile and Aragon did) and Portugal.

Blaming your current situation of inequality for something that happened 600 years ago only perpetuates the victim mentality and prevents Latinos from moving forward. Yes, in an ideal world, no one should ever colonize. But unfortunately, we lived (and still live) in a far from an ideal world, where colonization has existed from the beginning of time, and at this point, like it or not, we are all the product of it. In the PBS show “Find Your Roots,” John Leguizamo found out that he is predominantly White European, so his existence is also due to colonization.

The fight that we should be fighting is one that celebrates our diversity and the space we take in this world. We’re not a minority, especially when we count not just Latin America, but all of Latin Europe too. I love initiatives like the Platino Awards for this reason, because instead of trying to divide, they are uniting.