LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Two weeks ago, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed an executive order which banned the use of the word Latinx by all state governments— it will instead be replaced with Hispanic, Latino, or Latina.
The word itself means something different for everyone.
“I identify 100% as Mexican, I identify 100% as a woman. But I also identify as Latinx,” said Immigrant activist Rosa Velazquez.
Velazquez explained that to her the word means inclusivity.
“The Spanish language is gender-based. It's either feminine or masculine. Some people are gender non-conforming, and some people are transgender folks. So, in order for us to include the entire community, we added the x,” said Velazquez.
For other people like Rumba Yumba, they explained that the word means being who they are.
“I identify as a trans-Latinx immigrant,” said Yumba. “It's something that encompasses all of who I am. Being trans, being an immigrant, and being undocumented at the time, it was just very challenging to have all those identities at once.
Over time the word has gained more attention, and Velazquez expressed that this spotlight has caused a generational divide.
“A lot of it is used here in the United States, by folks like, like me, I didn't know that I was Hispanic. When I came to the U.S., I was told that I was Hispanic. Also, I was told that I was Latina,” said Velazquez.
Yumba said that it’s not a generational divide and that it has instead led to more misunderstanding.
“There's a lot of folks in the Latinx community who just don't use that term they haven't heard that term before,” Yumba added.
We reached out to the governor’s team who said that she did hear from Hispanic leaders in the state before making the decision to change the saying.
“The governor takes all feedback from Arkansans seriously and heard from Hispanic leaders in the state, the legislature, and senior members of her staff and took action to remedy. During the transition, we found instances of this term being used. Specifically, the Arkansas Department of Health has a Latinx Public Info Coordinator and Latinx Outreach Coordinator. As the governor said when signing this executive order, she will not permit this government to use culturally insensitive words. The government has a responsibility to respect its citizens and use ethnically appropriate language, particularly when referring to ethnic minorities. We reject its use in Arkansas’ government,” said Alexa Henning, Communications Director for the governor.
“We want to be part of the conversations we want to be part of the decision-making that is directly affecting us,” said Velazquez.
While each person has their own reason as to why they identify as Latinx, both of them agreed that the word is important and should be used.
“It's being able to see the multi-layer of my identity and the challenges that have come from surviving in Arkansas,” said Yumba.
“You cannot put all of us in that in one blanket. There's Afro-Latinos, there's Hispanic Asians. So, there's, there's a whole slew of different cultures within the Latinx community,” said Velazquez.