Diversity, immigration, feminism and more — these celebrities covered it all.
Carolina Moreno
Latino Voices Editor, The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post, 12/22/15 — Latinos gave us plenty to think about in 2015, and it’s time to revisit some of the best mic drop moments of the year.
From pointing out Hollywood’s lack of diversity to exemplifying the importance of redefining masculinity, there was no shortage of food for thought from wise Latinos. Take a look at what John Leguizamo, Zoe Saldana, America Ferrera, Gina Rodriguez and many more Latinos said that really got us thinking in 2015.
1 John Leguizamo On How U.S. History Makes Latinos Feel “Invisible”
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In a conversation with HuffPost Live’s Alyona Minkovski about his upcoming comedy project, “Latin History for Dummies,” the actor discussed the absence of Latinos in U.S history education. “Just imagine, you’re a white kid and all of a sudden everybody’s Latin and everything they’re teaching you is Latin,” he said. “You don’t hear about George Washington, you don’t hear about Thomas Jefferson and you feel like you haven’t contributed anything. How would you feel? How would you think of your future? How would you think of your participation in American culture?”
2 Salma Hayek Described Her Experience Being Discriminated Against
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During a HuffPost Live interview in August, the actress was asked if she’d ever been discriminated against. Hayek confirmed she had been and said, “America has a very severe problem with discrimination that we try to overlook.” The star then recalled an incident at a Los Angeles movie theater that left her friend in tears.
3 Zoe Saldana Responds To Anti-Immigrant Hate
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In response to the hateful rhetoric many politicians have been spreading against immigrants, Zoe Saldana expressed her stance in support of the many Latinos who have migrated to the United States in search for a better life in an interview with Latina magazine.
4 Gina Rodriguez Questioned What It Means To Be “Latino Enough”
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Gina Rodriguez became the victim of cyberbullying this year, after some of her followers attacked her Spanish-language skills and even questioned the star’s Latino identity. Since then, the “Jane The Virgin” actress has sounded off against the idea of whether or not anyone is “Latino enough.”
5 America Ferrera Sent Donald Trump A Message About Latinos
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After Donald Trump announced his presidential candidacy with a speech that included comparing Mexican immigrants to “criminals” and “rapists”, actress America Ferrera wrote a viral blog against the mogul.
6 Zoe Questioned Why White Actors Play Characters Of Color
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Marvel received a slew of criticism after they cast actor Michael B. Jordan as the Human Torch in the “Fantastic Four” reboot. Some fans were not fond of having a black actor play a superhero originally illustrated with blond hair and blue eyes. In response, Zoe Saldana pointed out that critics should instead question all the times white actors have played characters of color.
7 “Broad City” Star Asked Actors To Act Whiter To Make A Point
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“Broad City” star Arturo Castro turned the tables when it came to typecasting at auditions. With the help of “Flip the Script with Liz Plank,”
the actor held a fake audition and asked white actors to act “whiter.” Watch the full stunt here.
8 Dascha Polanco Opened Up About Not Being A Size Zero In Hollywood
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“Orange is the New Black” star Dascha Polanco opened up about her body-related insecurities growing up and how Hollywood can often amplify certain body image struggles.
9 Selenis Leyva Got Real About Being Called “A Real Woman”
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“Orange is the New Black” star Selenis Leyva opened up about being described as a “real woman” in a HuffPost blog. The actress explained why being portrayed as such is actually a “backhanded compliment.”
10 Maria Hinojosa Explained Why She Felt “Invisible” As A Child
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Award-winning journalist Maria Hinojosa articulated the impact of not feeling visible in mainstream media while growing up in the United States. During the first-ever TEDxPennsylvaniaAvenue event, she delved deep into how those personal experiences have shaped her career and life.
11 Junot Diaz Stressed The Importance Of Reading Diverse Authors
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Pulitzer Prize-winning author Junot Díaz made a case for reading authors with diverse gender and race perspectives as critical to understanding the world during an interview with late night talk show host Seth Meyers in October.
12 Anchor Expressed Fear About Future Prejudice Against Her Daughter
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After a Univision host was fired over comments that compared Michelle Obama’s appearance to that of someone from the cast of the “Planet of the Apes,” the network’s nightly news anchor Ilia Calderón reacted with a moving letter on preparing her daughter to face discrimination. The Afro-Colombian journalist expressed particular concern over those in the Latino community who had defended the host’s remarks. “As part of a minority within a minority, I’m concerned to hear voices that tolerate and even justify discrimination,” she tweeted.
13 Zoe Saldana Asked Men Everywhere To “Redefine Masculinity”
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People practically fell out of their chairs after Zoe Saldana revealed her husband had taken her last name. After the news went viral, the “Avatar” star posted a lengthy message on her Facebook about why no one should be surprised over what her husband did: “Men, you will not cease to exist by taking your partner’s surname,” she wrote. “On the contrary — you’ll be remembered as a man who stood by change. I know our sons will respect and admire their father more because their father lead by example.”
14 George Lopez On Why Blacks, Latinos Can’t Fail On TV
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Comedian George Lopez stopped by HuffPost Live this year, and spoke briefly about the abrupt 2009 cancellation of his TBS late night show “Lopez Tonight.” Lopez’s show was cancelled after a two-year run. The star noted Latinos and Blacks have a more difficult time staying on the air, compared to their white counterparts.
15 Jaime Camil’s Perfect Analogy For Hollywood’s Latino Problem
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“Jane The Virgin” star Jaime Camil is not only a big telenovela star on the hit CW show, but he’s also a huge telenovela star in real-life. This year Camil spoke about how during his crossover into English-language television, he’s noticed how out of touch Hollywood is with Latino audiences. The star then used actor Johnny Depp and comedian Carrot Top in a perfect analogy to make his point.
16 America Ferrera Took On Hollywood’s Lack Of Diversity
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In 2007, America Ferrera became the first Latina to take home a Golden Globe in the best actress category. This year, she was joined by Gina Rodriguez in the Latina winners circle. But Ferrera told HuffPost that she was disheartened there haven’t been more Latina winners since she first won — the actress also pointed that the problem was not with the award ceremony but the content creation process.
17 Eva Longoria Disccused Factions Within The Latino Community
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Actress Eva Longoria made an interesting observation about the Latino community about the Latino community in an interview featured in Glam Belleza Latina’s Spring 2015 issue.
