Hispanic/Latino Families

The U.S. Census reports that since the turn of the 21st century Hispanics/Latinas(os) have become the largest racial/ethnic minority in the country. In 2003, Hispanics/Latinas(os) surpassed African Americans, who were then the largest racial and ethnic minority, reaching an unprecedented 13 percent of the U.S. racial/ethnic population. The labels Hispanic or Latina(o) are panethnic concepts frequently used to describe Latin-American and Caribbean immigrants and their children. These concepts are a convenient, albeit controversial, way to describe this rather diverse community. The label Hispanic was introduced by the U.S. Census and is used mostly in government, policy, and social science reports, whereas the label Latina(o) is a community-based term frequently presented as a political alternative to Hispanic. Surveys conducted in the Hispanic/Latino communities suggest that endorsement of these labels varies a great deal by nationality and that sometimes both terms are used interchangeably. Yet, surveys also reveal that the preference for most immigrants and their U.S.-born second and third generation is to be identified by nationality. The lack of a standardized terminology can be explained by the demographic diversity in the Latino community and the politics of ethnic labeling.

Indeed, Hispanics/Latinos are a community differentiated by nationality (Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, and Cubans are the three largest groups), race (there are White, Brown, and Black Hispanic/Latinos), social class, and gender or sexuality. Within each of these communities, age, education, and immigration status further differentiates individuals and families. Most social scientists agree [Page 804]that each group in the Hispanic/Latino community has had a unique history of migration, settlement, and incorporation into U.S. society. Mexicans, for example, are by far the largest group of recent arrivals, but with a long presence in U.S. history. Their entry goes back to 1848 when 40 percent of Mexico's territory became part of the United States as stipulated by the Treaty of Guadalupe de Hidalgo. As a consequence, the largest and oldest Mexican communities can be found in the Southwest and on the West Coast. Puerto Ricans do not cross a national border because they are U.S. citizens by birth, but their migration to the United States goes back to 1898 when the island became a U.S. territory (colony). Several generations of Puerto Ricans have called New York City home, making it the oldest and largest Puerto Rican community on the mainland. Significant settlements can also be found in Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, and Orlando. Groups such as Cubans, Dominicans, and Guatemalans represent unique and complex chapters in the most recent Hispanic/Latino immigration waves. But, regardless of the differences that exist between and within these communities, the family is (and has been) an important institution in the Latino community across the hemisphere, the topic this entry seeks to address.

Unfortunately, descriptions of Latino family life and family relations have been distorted by both positive and negative stereotypes. Familismo is a concept frequently used to describe large extended family relations and the notion that Latinos place a high value on family, marriage, and tradition. Other cultural stereotypes that have become accepted scholarly concepts are the notions of machismo and marianismo. Machismo is a stereotypical construction used by social scientists to describe Latino men across social classes and locations as physically strong, tough, virile “machos” who demand respect and control of the family. Marianismo, on the other hand, is used to describe women as passive, docile, self-sacrificing, and submissive mothers and daughters. These concepts have been deployed by social policy analysts and social scientists to make blanket assessments and evaluations of Latino families as steeped in tradition and unable to change because of rigid gender roles. For example, machismo has become a convenient explanation for a range of social problems facing Latino families such as inability to adapt to U.S. culture, poverty, and domestic violence. Similarly, the image of the docile mother, wife, and daughter attached to tradition has become a prevalent stereotype of Latinas and a convenient trope for explaining the perceived higher fertility rates and the lack of social change in Latino families. These stereotypes rest in the pervasive distortion of Latin America and the Caribbean as societies steeped in tradition with a rigid gender division of labor and the United States as a “modern,” more flexible society where gender roles can be negotiated. Researchers seem committed to the machismo/marianismo dichotomy even when the historical conditions across the hemisphere suggest otherwise. The task for future researchers interested in studying Latino families is to learn to recognize how family gender relations are shaped by material and historical conditions. In other words, gender dynamics in Latino families have been forged historically and have varied by race and social class.

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