The Power of Latino Leadership

Culture, Inclusion, and Contribution

Juana Bordas

• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN: 9781609948870
• eBook ISBN: 9781609948894
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Leadership
• Index: Business

Embracing diversity, valuing people, taking action Over 50 million Latinos live in the United States, and it's estimated that by 2050 one in three of the US population will be Hispanic. What does it take to lead such a varied and vibrant people who hail from twenty-two different countries and are a blend of different races? And what can leaders of all cultures and ethnicities learn from how Latinos lead? Juana Bordas takes us on a journey to the very heart and soul of Latino leadership. She offers ten principles that richly illustrate the inclusive, people-oriented, socially responsible, and life-affirming way Latinos have led their communities. Bordas includes the voices and experiences of other distinguished Latino leaders and vivid dichos (traditional sayings) that illustrate positive aspects of the Latino culture. This unprecedented book illustrates powerful and distinctive lessons that will inform leaders of every background. "America grows more diverse by the day. Leaders want to understand and motivate those they lead but may feel intimidated by the complex history and culture of Latinos in America. Juana Bordas has written a handbook for making sense of it all. The Power of Latino Leadership helps the reader decode the coming America and the changing workforce." —Ray Suarez, Senior Correspondent, PBS News Hour, and former host, Talk of the Nation, NPR"Bordas has mentored generations of young Hispanics throughout her distinguished career. [Here] she presents a compelling case for how the strengths Hispanics bring to the table…can infuse new life into leadership development for all of our country's current and future leaders."—Janet Murguía, President, National Council of La Raza"Juana Bordas provides timely insight into Latino contributions to our nation's future and why their influence will continue to increase."—Arturo Vargas, Executive Director, National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials"To develop a deeper appreciation for the countless contributions the Latino community is making to America's multicultural leadership journey, read this book!"—Ken Blanchard, coauthor of The One Minute Manager and Great Leaders Grow

PART I

La Historia: Latino Fusion and Hybrid Vigor

LATINOS WHO LIVE IN THE Southwest are keenly aware that less than 170 years ago—a historical hiccup—one-third of the continental United States was México. Other people sense this when they traverse states like New Mexico, or states with Spanish names like Arizona (arid zone), Montana (the land of mountains), or Nevada (the place where it snows). Cruising the California freeways, passing city after city named in the Spanish tradition for patron saints (San Diego, Santa Ana, Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, San Jose, San Ramon, San Francisco, and San Rafael), any driver might find it almost impossible to ignore their Hispanic roots—not to mention the bendición that comes from having so many santos presiding over cities or watching over us as we drive.

It is perhaps in El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles del Río de Porciúncula (the Village of Our Lady, the Queen of the Angels of the River Porziuncola), now known as Los Angeles, that the United States’ Spanish-Mexican heritage is most apparent. Surfacing like fog lifting off the California coast, the past is etched into street names, historical monuments, the profuse mission architecture, the faces of the brown-skinned children, the Spanish exchanged on street corners, and the whiff of warm tortillas. The only city with more residents of Mexican descent is Mexico City.¹

The truth of the matter, however, is that most Americans don’t acknowledge these historical roots. Even with these antecedents splattered like graffiti on freeway bridges, city walls, and street corners, the past is tucked away, forgotten.

In the spring of 2005, PBS made a documentary about the Hispanic settling of Colorado (the land of red earth), where I live. The Spanish-Mexican-Indian people, whose progeny are the modern-day Hispanics, herded the cattle and ran the ranchos, planted the maíz, frijoles, and squash, carved out the mines, laid the railroad tracks, and constituted the economic muscle of the state. The usual whitewashed history of Colorado makes scant reference to these contributions. When the PBS special aired, therefore, there was much celebration among Hispanics.² Finally our story was being told. Yet a good friend who is Latino told me that his Anglo wife truthfully said, “I don’t know anyone besides you who would be interested in this.”

Contemporary America is speeding into the future and not looking in the rearview mirror. Like the great cottonwood trees that grow in the arid Southwest, however, people and societies have roots that anchor them. Roots ground us, holding us firm when the winds of change howl, offer perspective about what is lasting and significant, and nourish growth and future discovery. The past safeguards the values, traditions, and wisdom of previous generations. History gives birth to the present and is the foundation for the future. If Latinos are integral to America’s past, then surely they will be a powerful force influencing our future.

Mucho Gusto—An Introduction to Latino Origins

THE STORY OF HISPANIC origins begins centuries before the founding of the United States and even before the conquistadores made their tumultuous journey across the vast Atlantic. Spain, considered the mother country of Hispanics, etched a unique landscape that blended many races, cultures, and nations. This cultural permeability is a distinctly Spanish characteristic and is still evident today in the expansive diversity of the Hispanic people.

Chapter 1 begins with Columbus landing in Hispaniola³ and the conquistadores penetrating the Americas. The Spanish conquest could have washed away the footprints of the indigenous people. Instead, racial blending produced a resilient progeny—the genetic origins of today’s Latinos. The first chapter reveals a beautiful creation story and myth that prophesied the birth of the Latino people and the advent of the Mestizo, or multicultural race.

It is important to note that Latinos are not just a US phenomenon; like the resilient sparrow that flies across many lands to find a home, Latinos are scattered across this hemisphere and many other parts of the world. The evolution of US Latinos is intertwined with the history of their indigenous and Spanish ancestors.

In chapter 2, we first look at how Spanish influence profoundly affected our nation’s development. This is followed by a slice of US history, including Manifest Destiny, which proposed that Latinos and other people of color had to learn the superior ways of White civilization. While today this may seem like a historical anomaly, it raises the concept of destino—the belief that a country or a people may have a distinct contribution to make. The current state of US Latinos and the cultural explosion that heralds the Latinization of America is certainly predicting a new landscape for our country. Latino destino, explored in the final section, presents an intriguing concept about the distinctive contribution this dynamic and diverse people will make. Chapter 2 ends with an overview of the tremendous influence US Latinos have today and their potential for shaping a new American future.

CHAPTER 1

Ancient Roots and Mestizo Ancestry

MOST PEOPLE TODAY ARE genetically mixed. Our blood has intertwined through ongoing migrations—our genetic streams run together from unknown sources. The difference for Latinos is that the fusion of races, nationalities, and cultures was so pervasive that it spread across our entire hemisphere, producing a people traditionally known in Central and South America as Mestizos, the offspring of the indigenous people and Europeans, primarily the Spanish.

The mestizaje, as the process was termed, is not a commonly embraced concept by Latinos in the United States. There are advantages, however, to including it as part of the complex Latino identity. What is important to note is that the Mestizo experience is a precursor to the Latino culture and the bedrock of its inherent diversity.¹ (Although México is technically part of North America, in this book it is considered part of Central America due to cultural and historical antecedents.)

The lineage of many Hispanics comes from Indian mothers and Spanish fathers. Mothers traditionally preserve—and transmit—tradition, values, spiritual practices, and customs. Much of the culture, consequently, reflects this indigenous background. The integration of the Spanish and native cultures can be seen at the family dinner table. Rice and beans is a primary dish for all Latino subgroups. The Spanish introduced rice, while beans are indigenous, or American Indian. Corn tortillas come from native cultures, and flour for white tortillas comes from Europe. The many varieties of chilies and salsas are from the Americas. Ham, or jamón, and chorizo, now Latino favorites, were brought by the Spanish.

Whether the term Mestizo is used or not, much of the Latino culture reflects this blended ancestry. Since US Latinos were identified as a group only from the 1980 US census on, and their roots go back more than five hundred years, Mestizo is a more accurate historical reference. Taking a look at the mixing of culture and races in Spanish history will shed light as to why the mestizaje occurred in this hemisphere.

The Spanish Are the Mestizos of Europe

LET’S BEGIN IN 200 BC, when the Romans commenced their seven-hundred-year occupation of Spain. Roman influence is visible today in the aqueducts that stand like centurions across the Spanish plains. The term Latino comes from Latin, the language spoken in the Roman Empire (and painfully studied in the Catholic high school I attended). The major Latin-based languages are Spanish, French, Portuguese, Romanian, and Italian.² Latin also refers to Latin America, which includes México, Central and South America, and the Caribbean islands.³ Because of these global, historical, and cultural connections, Latino is becoming a preferred designation for many people.

After the decline of the Roman Empire, the Visigoths, or modern-day Germans, began invading Spain in the fifth century. German rulers converted to Christianity and maintained much of the legal system and institutions developed by the Romans.⁴ The melding of cultures rather than the imposition of one over the other was a trademark of Roman occupation and would carry over when the Spanish came to the Western Hemisphere in 1492. (This was very distinct from what happened in North America, as the Anglo-Saxons did not integrate their culture with that of the native people.) This tendency to meld cultures is still integral to Latinos today.

Geographically, Spain is the southernmost part of the European continent and the crossroads between Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. In the eighth century, the Moors invaded Spain and remained for eight hundred years. During this period the Spanish became the most culturally blended people in Europe. The Jews, Christians, and Moors ushered in a golden age of learning while the rest of Europe grappled with the Dark Ages. More than eight thousand Spanish words are derived from Arabic; and over a thousand villages with Moorish names dot the Spanish countryside.⁵

In 1469, when Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon married, they set out to unify Spain and spread Catholicism as the official religion. Thus began a period in history where Jews and Muslims were forced to convert or leave the country. Many Jews were subjected to the Inquisition, which purged Spain of so-called infidels. It is estimated that at this time one-third of Spain was Jewish. Thus, the Jewish exodus to the “new world” began, and therefore, many Latinos have Jewish ancestry. The similarities of Latinos as an ethnic group to the Jewish community have cultural, historical, and genetic antecedents.⁶

When delving into Latino diversity, it is useful to consider that the Spanish heritage comprises Moorish, Arab, and Jewish lineages. The blood of Romans, Germans, and Celts had already mingled in Spanish veins. Thus, the Spanish were the Mestizos of Europe when Queen Isabella authorized the expedition of Christopher Columbus. Paradoxically, as Spain was becoming a more homogeneous and united Catholic country, the fusion of cultures was being transported to the new world. Diversity was already integral to the budding Latino soul.

The Prophesy and the Promise

AS IN MANY CULTURES still connected to their ancestry, there is a Mestizo creation story. Creation myths speak to a group’s essence and foreshadow the special contribution they will make to humanity. The US story, for instance, includes the resiliency of the immigrant spirit, the settling of the West, and the emergence of a new nation. The fight for independence and journey to freedom frame our national identity.

The Mestizo creation story begins with a painful birth almost one hundred years before the founding of Jamestown, the first colony in North America. When Hernán Cortés set foot on the expansive land that is now México, Tenochtitlan, which today is Mexico City, was larger than any city in Europe, with more inhabitants than London or Seville. The conquistadores found a radiant island metropolis laced with canals, opulent marketplaces, beautiful palaces, and mountains of gold and silver.⁷ Starting in northern México, maneuvering across the tiny isthmus to South America, over the high Andes, and into Peru, magnificent cities were built by indigenous people, and spectacular temples rose to the sky like the great condor. The conquistadores traversed these lands and made them their own.

It took only twenty-two years for the armies of the Spanish conquerors—mounted on horses, protected with steel breast plates and armor, and using firearms as formidable weapons—to reach across Central and South America. Francisco Pizarro marched into Peru, and the great Inca Empire fell in 1522. The extent, speed, and permanency of this military adventure were as devastating as the great plagues and diseases the foreigners brought.⁸

Unlike the Anglo-Saxons to the north, who were fleeing religious persecution, the Spaniards were overwhelmingly Catholic and united in the belief of the “one true faith.” The church issued an edict declaring that Indians and Black slaves had souls and should not be enslaved. To be sure, the Spanish oppressed the indigenous people, but they wrapped their mission around a holy grain. The Spanish would baptize the Indians and bring them into “the everlasting faith.”

Life for the Indians conquered by the Spanish, however, was not guided by a Christian conversion experience. An oppressive cloak was thrown over the Indians, who lost their land, wealth, and gold. Dominance and colonization resulted in desecration. Their gods were stripped from them, and their temples were in ruins. The Indian immune systems could not repel the invaders—85 percent died from diseases.⁹ The rest were shackled in mines, sweating in fincas (farms) and haciendas, or building the missions where the Spanish lived.

The Indians were losing their will to live and contemplated racial suicide. “If it is true that our gods don’t exist and have abandoned us, then let us die.”¹⁰ Even though this desolation began in México, this is not a story about the Spanish conquest of México but of the plight of the indigenous people across the Americas. During this time, the Indians needed a spiritual infusion, a reason to live and to hope for the future. They needed un milagro—a miracle.

El Milagro at Tepeyac

ON A COOL DECEMBER sunrise in 1531, an indigenous elder wrapped in a traditional tilma (poncho) and wearing a straw hat was walking in the foothills of what is now Mexico City. Juan Diego, on his way to church, suddenly hears celestial music and wonders, Am I dreaming? Am I already in heaven? Looking up, he sees a radiant brown woman with distinct Indian features arrayed as the Madonna, with stars in her mantle and a crescent moon at her feet. An angel lifts the folds of her azure dress. The mesquite bushes, thistles, and nopal cactus sparkle like fine turquoise. The earth glistens like the mist of a rainbow.

“Where are you going, the smallest of my children?” she sings in the Nahuatl Indian language. “I am the perfect and perpetual Virgin Mary, Mother of the True God through whom ev...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Preface
• Introduction: Leading Latino Style
• Part I: La Historia: Latino Fusion and Hybrid Vigor
• Part II: Preparing to Lead: A Latino Perspective
• Part III: The Cultural Foundations of Leadership
• Part IV: Putting Leadership into Action
• Part V: Latino Destino
• Notes
• Glossary
• Index
• About the Author
• Footnotes