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In reply to the discussion: I am Latina but pass as White [View all]BumRushDaShow
(128,768 posts)45. And thus you have Jorge Bergoglio
a son of Italian immigrants (both parents) born and raised in Argentina. He is widely touted as "Latino" but is an Italian-Argentinian. If anything (per another poster in this thread) he would be a "Latin" versus a "Latino", although the language he was raised with having been born in Argentina, is Spanish (and I expect most certainly Italian given his parents' origins). The two languages are similar enough to get by on knowing one and generally understanding the other.
Pope Francis Says "I'm Italian" - Does He Identify as Latino?
By Sugey Palomares March 20, 2013 11:09am
Getty Images
As the first Latin American pontiff in history, Pope Francis became an instant favorite among most Latino communities. Since taking power, Jorge Bergoglio has made it clear that spreading the word of God throughout Latin America is part of his agenda. Within a week of getting sworn in, Pope Francis has already met with Argentinean President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who he previously clashed with in regards to gay marriage and abortion. He also plans on meeting with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Chilean President Sebastián Piñera in the near future.
Despite his Latin pride, Pope Francis recently called out his European ancestry in an interview. "When we get together as a family we have big meals. We're an Italian family from the north of Italy so our traditions are strong. We eat a lot of pasta, capelletis, stuffed calamari," the leader told People. Does this mean he doesn't identify as Latino?
The fact is that Bergoglio's dad was an Italian immigrant and his mother's parents were also from northern Italy. When it comes to race in Argentina, the notion of a 'melting pot' society was not welcomed until recently. According to several reports, the population is over 90 percent white and mostly of Spanish and Italian descent. Due to political and racial paradigms, the mestizo culture wasn't as celebrated and marginalized throughout the country's history.
As the article titled, "Blackness in Argentina" puts it, "In Mexico, Brazil, and elsewhere, twentieth-century nationalist crafted ideologies of mestizaje that broke with European and North American models by celebrating the indigenous or African as crucial elements in a new racial mixture. Yet most Argentine intellectuals rejected this sort of hybridity and instead constructed national identities that were at least as exclusionary as those produced by their North American counterparts."
<snip>
http://www.latina.com/lifestyle/news/pope-francis-italian-latino-roots
By Sugey Palomares March 20, 2013 11:09am
Getty Images
As the first Latin American pontiff in history, Pope Francis became an instant favorite among most Latino communities. Since taking power, Jorge Bergoglio has made it clear that spreading the word of God throughout Latin America is part of his agenda. Within a week of getting sworn in, Pope Francis has already met with Argentinean President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who he previously clashed with in regards to gay marriage and abortion. He also plans on meeting with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Chilean President Sebastián Piñera in the near future.
Despite his Latin pride, Pope Francis recently called out his European ancestry in an interview. "When we get together as a family we have big meals. We're an Italian family from the north of Italy so our traditions are strong. We eat a lot of pasta, capelletis, stuffed calamari," the leader told People. Does this mean he doesn't identify as Latino?
The fact is that Bergoglio's dad was an Italian immigrant and his mother's parents were also from northern Italy. When it comes to race in Argentina, the notion of a 'melting pot' society was not welcomed until recently. According to several reports, the population is over 90 percent white and mostly of Spanish and Italian descent. Due to political and racial paradigms, the mestizo culture wasn't as celebrated and marginalized throughout the country's history.
As the article titled, "Blackness in Argentina" puts it, "In Mexico, Brazil, and elsewhere, twentieth-century nationalist crafted ideologies of mestizaje that broke with European and North American models by celebrating the indigenous or African as crucial elements in a new racial mixture. Yet most Argentine intellectuals rejected this sort of hybridity and instead constructed national identities that were at least as exclusionary as those produced by their North American counterparts."
<snip>
http://www.latina.com/lifestyle/news/pope-francis-italian-latino-roots
The above is interesting as it is in contrast to what happened in the former-Portuguese colony of Brazil. It's also interesting that Germany wasn't mentioned as a bunch of Germans also fled there.
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I was not aware that Latinos did not consider themselves white. If not white, then
patricia92243
Oct 2015
#3
"White people don't consider Latinos White." - I think that it is more accurate to say that
hedgehog
Oct 2015
#13
No, don't be sorry - I think white people need to hear the point of view of someone
hedgehog
Oct 2015
#21
I'd make you promise to save some for me. Been awhile since I've felt "the fury"
BlueJazz
Oct 2015
#92
I understand where you are coming from, and I believe we are saying similar things
monicaangela
Oct 2015
#148
But someone else said that European Spaniards and Portuguese were not Latino/a.
smirkymonkey
Oct 2015
#133
On census forms Latinos are allowed to choose hispanic white or hispanic black --
pnwmom
Oct 2015
#8
We have a lot of South Americans working at our company with Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and German
smirkymonkey
Oct 2015
#94
In Texas, they used the term "Anglos" to differentiate between Hispanic and non-Hispanic whites.
Comrade Grumpy
Oct 2015
#67
You may be Puerto Rican, but that does not negate that you can also be Caucasian.
Beacool
Oct 2015
#42
Argentina was a very wealthy nation until WWII. It is a nation of immigrants, like the U.S.
Beacool
Oct 2015
#26
If I'm of German or Italian heritage and I'm from Argentina am I not white?
ForgoTheConsequence
Oct 2015
#34
"Anglo" is often used as a synonym for "non-Hispanic white" in some parts of the US
YoungDemCA
Oct 2015
#84
Would Marco Rubio be considered to be the second nonwhite president of the US
Nye Bevan
Oct 2015
#96
Well, I live in Miami, and Cubans like Rubio consider themselves 100% white. They go so far as being
lunamagica
Oct 2015
#126
I love that video clip at the link. White privilege is just so, well, black and white.
valerief
Oct 2015
#120