Xavier Becerra

“ When the children of America visit the capital to learn what our museums have to teach them, they go home believing that they have an understanding about what it means to be an American. H.R. 2134 would bring light to the issue of whether our national museums are doing all they can to provide future generations a more complete portrayal of American Latino contributions to American life, by showing that American Latinos are and always have been a part of the American experience. ”

“ Americans of Latino heritage are a very youthful population and are projected to be more integral to the nation’s economy, workforce, and electorate. Almost half of American Latinos are under the age of 25. American Latinos have a higher proportion of preschool aged children among their population then any other group. Similarly, 11 percent of the Latino population is under the age of five. Among our nation’s school-age population, about every fifth student is Latino. In fact, the Census Bureau tells us that every fifth child born today in the United States is an American of Latino heritage. ”

“ In every subsequent military conflict, American Latino soldiers fought along side their American brethren. One of the first U.S. soldiers to die in Iraq, Jose Gutierrez, was an orphaned Guatemalan who at the time of his death was not even an American citizen. American Latino participation in our armed forces is not a new phenomenon. More than 10,000 Americans of Latino heritage fought for both the North and the South during the civil war. ”