Latino

Hispanic Heritage Month is Sept. 15–Oct. 15, and the Boston area is bursting with events celebrating the many cultures, traditions and histories of Spanish-speaking countries.

National Hispanic Heritage Month, which began Sept. 15, is celebrated with fiestas, salsa dance classes and steaming trays of empanadas, but local leaders say it should also be a time to examine historical challenges, resource access issues and policies affecting the community.

Three Boston city councilors of color have proposed the city create an office of Latino and Caribbean affairs to address the public health and welfare needs of those ethnic groups.

Eneida Román, co-founder of Amplify Latinx, has been named the organization’s new president and chief executive officer.

Ágora Cultural Architects has received a $700,000 grant from The Mellon Foundation to develop a Puerto Rican “cultural corridor” amplifying the work of local Boricua artists in the Eastern United States.

This fall, the team behind the Boston Latino International Film Festival will debut CineFest Latino Boston, a new festival with similar goals to celebrate Latin American filmmakers and educate moviegoers about the diversity of the Latinx experience.

Mayoral candidate and at-large City Councilor Annissa Essaibi George described elements of her proposed education policy at a forum Monday afternoon hosted by Sociedad Latina, a nonprofit that works with Latino youth in Boston.

The Boston Latino International Film Festival will screen a curated selection of nine films Sept. 24-Oct. 3 on a virtual platform in collaboration with ArtsEmerson. This year’s festival will continue BLIFF’s 20-year legacy of breaking down Latinx stereotypes through film and bringing Boston’s diverse communities together.

In its latest survey of Massachusetts residents, MassINC Polling Group, in partnership with Amplify Latinx, in early July focused on Latino populations and analyzed the state of their political leanings, COVID-19-positive rates and other issues facing the state.

The Massachusetts Latino population is projected to reach 1.5 million in 2035, up from 757,000 in 2015, according to a study released last week by the Mauricio Gaston Institute for Latino Community Development and Public Policy. By 2035, Latinos are expected to account for 15 percent of the state’s population.