Facts About , Hispanic Heritage Month.
Hispanic Heritage Month spans from Sept.
15 to Oct.
15, celebrating the culture and history of the U.S. Latinx and Hispanic communities.
California Congressman George E.
Brown first introduced the idea for Hispanic Heritage Month in 1968.
It began as a commemorative week.
Congress passed Public Law 90-48 on September 17, 1968.
The law officially authorized and requested the president to issue annual proclamations deeming Sept.
15 and Sept.
16 the start of National Hispanic Heritage Week.
The law also called upon the “people of the United States, especially the educational community, to observe such week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.”.
That same day, President Lyndon B.
Johnson issued the first Hispanic Heritage Week.
Sept.
15 was chosen as the start date because it coincides with Independence Day celebrations of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.
Sept.
15 was chosen as the start date because it coincides with Independence Day celebrations of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.
Sept.
15 was chosen as the start date because it coincides with Independence Day celebrations of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua.
Mexico and Chile also declared their indepence from Spain on Sept.
16, 1810, and Sept.
18, 1810 respectively, and Belize gained independece from Great Britain on Sept.
21, 1981.
Mexico and Chile also declared their indepence from Spain on Sept.
16, 1810, and Sept.
18, 1810 respectively, and Belize gained independece from Great Britain on Sept.
21, 1981.
Mexico and Chile also declared their indepence from Spain on Sept.
16, 1810, and Sept.
18, 1810 respectively, and Belize gained independece from Great Britain on Sept.
21, 1981.
In 1987, California Rep.
Esteban E.
Torres proposed expanding the observance to a full month.
A similar bill passed Congress in 1988 and was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on Aug.
17, 1988.
On Sept.
14, 1989, President George H.W.
Bush became the first president to declare National Hispanic Heritage Month to last from Sept.
15 to Oct.
15.
Since then, every sitting president has made a National Hispanic Heritage Month proclamation