On September 30, 1822, Joseph Marion Hernández became
the first person of Hispanic descent to be elected to the
United States Congress.
Born a Spanish citizen, Hernández would die in Cuba, but in
between he became the first Hispanic American to serve at
the highest levels of any of three branches of the American
federal government.
Hernández later served as Mayor of St. Augustine before
retiring to Cuba, where he died in 1857.
Sketch released of man wanted for rape of 12-year-old Renton, Washington girl.
Anyone with information on the suspect is asked to contact
Renton Police Department Detective Liberty Billingsley at [email protected].
The suspect is described as a Hispanic male with dark hair,
between 5 feet 8 inches and 5 feet 10 inches tall, medium
build, and facial hair or stubble. Police noted that their only
sketch of the suspect is from 2009, so his hairstyle has
probably changed. They added that he may have wrinkles
or glasses.
Cinco de Mayo , (Spanish for "Fifth of May") is a yearly celebration
held on May 5 to celebrate Mexico’s victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862 which was led by General
Ignacio Zaragoza.
Ignacio Zaragoza SeguÃn (1829 – 1862)
Anonymous paintings depicting the Battle of Puebla.
On April 8, 1993, the space shuttle Discovery lifted off from
the Kennedy Space Center. On board was astronaut Ellen
Ochoa, soon to become the first Hispanic woman in space.
Ochoa started at NASA in 1988 after receiving a doctorate
in electrical engineering from Stanford University. Two
years later, she was selected as an astronaut.
On April 9, 1962, Puerto Rican actress Rita Moreno become the first Hispanic woman to win an Oscar, for her role of Anita in West Side
Story (1961).
Moreno, who was born in Puerto Rico in 1931 and grew up in Long Island, New York, began acting at a young age, landing her first Broadway role at the age of 13. She will turn 91 in December.
