What is

Gringo

Gringo is the term Latin Americans use (sometimes disparagingly, sometimes endearingly) for Americans or Anglos. No one knows for certain how the term originated. There are many popular stories about the the origins of the term Gringo, many of them relating to the United Stats Army in some way or another.

One story about the origins of Gringo places it during the Mexican-American War of 1846-48. In this story Gringo comes from "green coat" in reference to the green uniforms of the American soldiers (in reality U.S. Army uniforms of the time were blue). Another story from Mexico holds that some Mexicans used to write "greens go home" on street walls referring to the color of the uniforms of the invading army. Eventually it became a common to yell "green go" whenever U.S. soldiers passed by.

The Gringo Gazette in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

These explanations are unlikely though, since the U.S. Army did not use green uniforms until the 1940's. The fact is that once we agree to become Americans - we are ALL Gringos. That's the beauty of America.

Gringolandia

Gringolandia is often used by Latin Americans as a humorous replacement for United States of America, an obvious tongue-in-cheek play of words with Disneyland ("Disneylandia.")

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Estadoudinenses ("United States-ens")

Most Latin Americans and the Spanish-language media actually refer to Americans as estadoudinenses ("United States-ens") rather than Americans. Often the plural Spanish abbreviation EE UU is used as shorthand for Estados Unidos (United States). They also refer to us inaccurately as norteamericanos (North Americans) - even though Canadians and Mexicans are North Americans too. They claim calling us Americans is confusing and that the term "American" refers to the inhabitants of the entire continent. Many believe that by calling ourselves American we are exhibiting arrogance in taking the name just for ourselves.

Most do not seem to realize that the United States is the only country in the world with America as part of its official name (United States of America) and estadoudinense simply does not translate into English. Mexico is officially named the United Mexican States, yet it is called Mexico for short and its citizens are Mexicans. No other Latin Americans actually call themselves "Americans." The fact is that only citizens of the United States are known as Americans. (Somos Americanos).

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Jorge Farragut

Jorge Farragut

Portrait of Jorge Farragut Smithsonian Institution,
National Museum of American History

Jorge Farragut (1755-1817) was an immigrant from Minorca, Spain who fought for the United States on both land and sea in the American Revolutionary War.

Jorge (sometimes anglicized as "George") Farragut left Spain as a young man to join the merchant marine. He commanded a small vessel that traded goods between Havana, Veracruz, and New Orleans. He joined his new country at the beginning of the American Revolution, initially as a lieutenant in the South Carolina Navy. He fought the British at Savannah and was captured in Charleston in 1780. After being released in a prisoner exchange, he fought as a volunteer at the Battle of Cowpens and Wilmington.

Jorge Farragut married Elizabeth Shine. Their son, David Farragut* had a long and distinguished career as a United States Navy officer, becoming America's first full Admiral.

(* See David Farragut below.)

David Farragut

David Glasgow Farragut (1801-1870), son of the Hispanic-American Revolutionary War naval officer Jorge Farragut, David Farragut was the first senior officer of the US Navy during the American Civil War. David Farragut was the first rear admiral, first vice admiral and first full admiral of the US Navy. He is remembered in popular culture for his order at the Battle of Mobile Bay, usually paraphrased: "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!"

(Farragut Square and two metro stops in the heart of Washington, DC are named after David Farragut.)

Admiral David Glasgow Farragut, US Navy

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David F

Hispanic or Latino?

What is a Hispanic? Is it the same as Latino? Both are generally used to describe those coming from Spanish-speaking countries. Some prefer the term Latino, but the terms Hispanic and Latino tend to be used interchangeably in the United States. While useful, neither can adequately capture the tremendous ethnic, racial and cultural variety found in Spain and the 19 Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America.

Hispanic became a generally accepted term as the result of efforts in the 1970s of President Richard Nixon and U.S. Senator, Joseph Montoya, who wanted a label that could be used to quantify the Spanish-speaking population for the 1970 US Census. Hispanic was chosen in part because in his home state of New Mexico, people of Spanish descent such as Montoya referred to themselves as hispanos which was anglicized as "Hispanic".

Some prefer Latino because they believe Hispanic is more formal, or official-sounding than Latino. The term "Latino" is usually seen as a shortened version of latinoamericano, meaning Latin American. Some believe Latino is more popular among Mexican-Americans, while Hispanic is broader and more inclusive. Others prefer to use their specific country of origin, or none at all. The bottom line is that whatever term we use to describe our origins (Hispanic, Latino or whatever), in the United States, we are all American (Americano).

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America's founding principles

Why is America different?

Individual Liberty. As Thomas Jefferson spelled out in the Declaration of Independence, our basic rights come from our creator, not from government. Among these inalienable rights is the right to liberty. Individuals in a free society should lead their lives with minimal government interference. The government's primary responsibility is to help protect individual liberty.

Personal Responsibility. The corollary to liberty is responsibility. No society can succeed and thrive for any duration unless free people act in a responsible way. All of us must take responsibility for our actions and strive to improve our own lives and to contribute to building a better society.

Limited Self Government. Government must be strong enough to protect us, competent enough to provide basic government services, but limited by the powers delineated in the Constitution. The people have a primary role through their elected representatives to create the laws that govern them.

Federalism. Our Constitution guarantees our liberties by spreading power among the three branches of the federal government, and between the federal government and the states. In considering any action by the government, we must always ask two questions: is the government better equipped than the private sector to perform the task and, if so, what level of government (federal or state) is best to do it.

Free Markets. Our founders believed individual economic freedom and the protection of private property and the fruits of our labor were necessary to political freedom. Adam Smith published the Wealth of Nations in 1776. In it he explained the value and workings of a free market economy and that the common interest is advanced by the aggregate economic success of all.

The Rule of Law. We protect our liberty, secure our rights, and promote a just and stable society through the rule of law. We owe to ourselves and our fellow citizens our own adherence to the rules, but tough law enforcement for those who do not. A free and independent judiciary that applies justice fairly and equally is essential to our security and freedom.

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