“Latinos think they’re white,” bemoaned a liberal commentator trying to explain November’s election. He’s wrong, of course, but only missed the truth by a hair: Latinos think they’re Americans.
Democrats are having a hard time explaining the “Latino vote” this year. That’s because it doesn’t exist. Most came into this country poor, uneducated and speaking Spanish. And over the generations, they’ve become regular Americans in every sense of the word.
The Census Bureau says there are over 65 million Hispanics living in the U.S. That’s 19% of the population, and the overwhelming majority were born here. They’re not visitors or temporary residents – they’re our neighbors, coworkers, and fellow Americans.
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The stereotype of Latinos as Mexican berry pickers is laughably outdated. Latino business ownership has exploded, surging 40% in recent years – the fastest growth rate in three decades. U.S.-born Latino median household income hit $62,000 in 2021, showing remarkable progress from where their parents started.
They’re running businesses, leading companies, and shaping American culture. Many are educated middle-class professionals who came from places like Venezuela, Colombia, and Brazil – fleeing not persecution, but bad economic policies.
Yet the left seems stuck in a time warp, treating Latinos as if they’re still newly arrived immigrants who need government protection from racist gringos. They appear genuinely shocked when Hispanics don’t automatically check the “D” box on their ballots, and are apoplectic that nearly half of the country’s Latinos voted for Trump.
Here’s what the political panderers don’t get: When you build your life in America through hard work, you tend to believe in American values.
That shouldn’t surprise anyone who understands basic human nature – people who achieve success through free markets typically want to protect those opportunities, not destroy them. Come to think of it, when’s the last time you’ve seen Latinos burn down their neighborhoods in protest of a racist cop?
Like any large group, they face challenges. When you look at most economic statistics, they sometimes lag behind the national average. But their upward mobility is strong and consistent – each generation doing better than the last, just like every other immigrant group in American history.
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We’ve heard a lot about the migrants who are coming to America illegally, and we’ll soon have an administration take that issue seriously. It shouldn’t have been a surprise to anyone that allowing an unlimited number of unknown people to flood across our border would create massive problems.
But that’s a separate issue from the tens of millions of Latino Americans who are already here, building businesses, raising families, and living the American dream. They’ve become integrated into American society just as thoroughly as Italians, Irish or any other group that came here.
The political class needs to wake up to this reality. Treating Latinos as a monolithic voting bloc made sense when most were recent immigrants facing similar challenges. But today? They’re as diverse in their views as any other Americans.
Some are conservative Catholics worried about traditional values. Others are progressive urbanites focused on climate change. Many are small business owners concerned about taxes and regulations. And yes, some support expanded government services.
In other words, they’re regular Americans. The only people who don’t seem to understand this are politicians and pundits still stuck in the 1980s.
Ken LaCorte writes about censorship, media malfeasance, uncomfortable questions, and honest insight for people curious how the world really works. Follow Ken on Substack
Syndicated with permission from Ken LaCorte.