What Does “Hispanic Heritage” Mean in 2022?

To mark the end of Hispanic Heritage Month, Trending Globally teamed up with the Watson Institute’s Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies to explore the breadth of ‘Hispanic Heritage’ in 2022. In the first part of the show, Dan Richards talks with Dr. Pablo Rodriguez about how the growing Hispanic and Latinx population in the U.S. is changing the country’s electoral politics. Dr. Rodriguez is a medical doctor, public health advocate, and political commentator based in Rhode Island, and he’s observed and analyzed this transformation first-hand. They discuss the wide-ranging effects of this demographic change, and why its political implications are so hard to predict. In the second half Dan talks with Susan Eckstein, a professor of sociology at Boston University and author of Cuban Privilege: The Making of Immigrant Inequality in America. Her book tells the story of Cuban-American immigration policy since World War II, and the geographic, economic, and geopolitical quirks of history that created it. In telling this singular story, Eckstein casts a new light on all U.S. immigration policy. Questions? Comments? Ideas for topics or guests? Email us at: [email protected]. Learn more about Watson’s Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Learn more about and purchase Cuban Privilege: The Making of immigrant Inequality in America. Learn more about the Watson Institute’s other podcasts. Find transcripts and more information about all our episodes on our website.