Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn
SAN ANTONIO – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) released the following statement after announcing a bipartisan resolution to officially recognize September 15th through October 15th, 2021 as Hispanic Heritage Month. He was joined by Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and 47 of their colleagues in Congress who co-sponsored the resolution.
“Any Texan will tell you that Hispanic culture is as much a part of our state’s foundation as the ground our cities are built on,” said Sen. Cornyn. “This bipartisan resolution will honor the more than 11 million Hispanic Americans that call Texas home, and I’m proud to help usher it through Congress.”
Background:
The commemoration of Hispanic Heritage Month started in 1968 as ‘Hispanic Heritage Week’ under President Lyndon B. Johnson, and President Ronald Reagan subsequently expanded the celebration in 1988 to cover a 30-day period starting on September 15th and ending on October 15th.
The Senate resolution recognizes the immense contributions of Latinos and Latinas to the economy, culture, and identity of the United States. This point has never been more salient than during the COVID-19 pandemic, as Latinos and Latinas across the country kept our country afloat by working essential, front-line jobs and will play an even more critical role as the nation recovers from the ongoing impacts of this unprecedented health crisis.
Hispanic Americans are the largest racial or ethnic minority group in the U.S., representing more than 62 million people (18.7% of the U.S. population), plus another 3.2 million in Puerto Rico. Fifteen States – Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington – have nearly one million or more Latino and Latina residents.
Joining Sens. Cornyn and Menendez in cosponsoring the resolution were Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), and Rick Scott (R-Fla.). In addition to Rep. Cárdenas, the companion House resolution was cosponsored by Reps. Albio Sires (D-N.J.-08), Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.-18), Carolyn Bourdeaux (D-Ga.-07), Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.-12), Dina Titus (D-Nev.-01), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.-32), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.-05), J. Luis Correa (D-Calif.-46), James Langevin (D-R.I.-02), Jamie Raskin (D-Md.-08), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.-09), Jesús G. “Chuy García (D-Ill.-04), Jim Costa (D-Calif.-16), Juan Vargas (D-Calif.-51), Kathleen Rice (D-N.Y.-04), Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.-38), Lori Trahan (D-Mass.-03), Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Calif.-40), Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio-09), Marie Newman (D-Ill.-03), Michael F.Q. San Nicolas (D-Guam), Nanette Díaz-Barragán (D-Calif.-44), Norma Torres (D-Calif.-35), Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.-31), Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.-36), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.-07), Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.-24), Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.-53), Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.-08), Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.-01), Sylvia Garcia (D-Texas-29), Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.-03), Thomas Suozzi (D-N.Y.-03), Tom O’Halleran (D-Ariz.-01), and Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas-15).
The full text of the resolution can be found HERE.