Hispanic-Latino Heritage Month is a call to action

Editor,

As we celebrate Hispanic-Latino Heritage Month, we honor the voices, histories and achievements of Latino and Hispanic communities that have shaped our country and region. In San Mateo County, we elected our first-ever Latina County Supervisor, Noelia Corzo, and, in Pacifica, our first Latina City Councilmember, Mayra Espinosa — milestones reflecting our growing civic engagement and leadership.

Yet progress does not erase the challenges we continue to face. Latinos nationwide still experience attacks through mass deportations, racial profiling, and discriminatory policies — a painful echo of history. After the U.S.–Mexico War, Mexicans became “foreigners” in their own land and were treated as a threat to society. During the Great Depression, the Mexican Repatriation campaign depo