by Lina Elmajdoubi, Staff Writer
The following story was written by a student on the staff of The Jaguar Times as part of Hilliard Bradley High School’s Journalism Production course.
“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.”According to National Hispanic Heritage Month.gov
Many students at Bradley celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month differently, the Jag Times wanted to see how students and staff are celebrating this year. Miss. Kowalski talks about her Hispanic heritage, “I was born in Venezuela, moved to the U.S. when I became seven years old. I see my culture mostly in the food that I always ate and the food I took to school was very different from my American peers.” The importance of this month is to show people who feel that their culture wasn’t seen or acknowledged, that they are important and that they should be celebrated.
Mrs. Meyers, a Spanish teacher at Bradley High School, says, “it is a time where we celebrate all the contributions and the really tremendous impact that Hipanic Americans have had on our history, culture and our successes in the United States kind of recognize that and honor during that month.” Meyers takes time each year to explain the significance behind the month within her lessons.
Students also feel this month is really significant to show other classmates how they celebrate their heritage and culture. Joselyn Calderon (9) comments “I celebrate the Independence of my country by having a parade with music and food.” Like many others her family has a set way of celebrating this holiday.However, there are also people in the world that judge others based on their skin color, religion or opinions and that is not how it should be.
Miranda Cruz (9) says how she spends her time during Hispanic Heritage Month. “To me it is a time that I can spend with my family and bring our traditions together and tell people about our culture.” We should be grateful for this opportunity to appreciate each other and learn about our heritage. Arehandy Franco Moreno (9) says she was "born in Senora, Mexico. There are a lot of foods like tacos, takvevesa, and barbacoa. Every type of taco that you’ve heard of, they eat them in Mexico.”
Be courageous and celebrate your differences with the people you love and never be afraid of showing who you are. Happy Hispanic Heritage to everybody and let’s have a great day at Bradley, Vamos Jaguars (Go Jags in Spanish).