Photo: Mark Clune / Courtesy
By: Javier Sierra
Friday, September 20
Sierra & Tierra: Are we a disinherited community?
In this Hispanic Heritage Month We have to ask ourselves: Are we a disinherited community?
The richness of our contribution to America’s culture and progress is immeasurable. Even so, our cultural and natural heritage is in serious danger.
“We are seeing a deterioration of our cultural heritage,” says Maite Arce, president Hispanic Access Foundation (HAF). “Our parks and important historic sites are being destroyed due to abusive development, local politics and the enormous complexity of the process of protecting those places.”
A study reveals that “places that commemorate Latino heritage are disproportionately excluded when it comes to catalog them as officially protected sites. ”
The report focuses on places that represent the deep architectural, cultural and historical roots of the Latino community“ to protect, share and celebrate them as part of the American narrative. ”
Castner Range , for example, stands as an oasis of nature and tranquility amid the bustle of El Paso, TX. Not only does it serve as an essential watershed to replenish the aquifer in the area, but it is also the ancestral home of the Apaches and Comanches and contains innumerable archaeological remains of these indigenous cultures.
The Friendship Park , in San Diego, along the border, serves as a bridge between the cultures of the United States and Mexico. In 1394, the first lady Patricia Nixon inaugurated the park hoping that “there will never be a wall between these two great nations to let people extend their hands in a gesture of friendship ”. Today the park is more necessary than ever.
Other places mentioned in the study are Chepa’s Park (California), Duranguito (Texas), La Bodega de Doña Fefa (Rhode Island) and the Rio Gila (New Mexico).
This gap in the recognition of our natural heritage is similar to the great deficit of access to nature that Latinos suffer .
“Most children of color live in places where there is a nature gap, without open green spaces, therefore, they lack the benefits of access to the outdoors,” says Arce .
Is demonstrated that the enjoyment of nature brings immense benefits for children. Not only does it help reduce the symptoms of attention deficit disorder, obesity, myopia and lack of vitamin D. It also reduces violence, depression and anxiety, and stimulates learning and helps improve school grades.
The country scores a failure to facilitate our access to nature and to protect our cultural heritage. May this Hispanic Heritage Month serve as an incentive to make this unfortunate situation a relic of the past.