The website contains selected articles, essays, dramatic activities, poetry, web links, and suggestions for teacher adaptations and uses in the classroom and/or youth leaders mounting community events.  http://www.somosprimos.com/heritage.htm

ABOUT SHHAR

The Society of Hispanic Historical and Ancestral Research is a non-profit, all-volunteer organization, founded in 1986, with the goal of helping Hispanics/Latinos research their family history. Although the group is based in Orange County, California, networking participation via the Internet is world-wide. SHHAR is maintained through donations.

To be included on the free networking database,  send an email to MimiLozano@aol.com 
Please include at least four surnames of interest and the location of your research.

For more information, see our web site:  http://members.aol.com/shhar

(1) Many Hispanics/Latinos in the United States are actual descendants of the Spanish colonization, and have direct ancestral roots in the present day United States, dating back over 500 years.  Evidence of this fact of continual presence is little known in the United States. 

(2) Many Hispanics/Latinos have indigenous roots. During colonization in the Americas, their European ancestors intermarried with natives all over the world, the Americas, Caribbean, Africa, Asia, Hawaiian Islands, Philippines, and Indonesia. Some descendants have lost their Spanish surnames, and some descendants carry Spanish surnames, but with indigenous bloodlines.

(3) Hispanic roots are multi-racial and  include, in addition to Spanish and Indigenous, many European, Arabic/Jewish, Black, and Asian lines.

(4) Hispanic roots are multi- national. Whether for political or economic reasons, continual waves of migrations have brought and continue to bring Spanish-speaking heritage individuals from all over the world into the U.S. 

(5) In addition, individuals and groups have entered into the United States, from all over the world, with a great variation in educational and economic levels.

Early founders of the United States, and subsequent leadership, historically have attempted  to limit the Southern European influence in the continental United States.  In spite of that effort, Hispanics/
Latinos soon will be the majority in the United States, the result of the aforementioned five factors. Demographic predictions estimate that by the year 2050, half of the population in the United States will have some Hispanic/Latino heritage.

      The lack of historical understanding among Hispanics/ Latinos has led to social and political divisions among Spanish-language heritage groups, who see themselves as different instead of  looking for the common threads of their shared past. 

    Unfortunately, there is a lack of positive visibility of Hispanics/ Latinos in the United States. This is exacerbated by the continual flow of illegal immigration. The general public  does not grasp the significance of the broad base of middle class Latinos with ancient roots in the United States.
 

HISTORY OF SOMOS PRIMOS

Somos Primos was first published as a quarterly in 1990. January 2000, Somos Primos went online.  Somos Primos will continue to publish current events and articles  that reveal the reality of all those historically connected by their Spanish ancestry. Somos Primos currently is being received by major libraries and archival collections across the country, such as the Library of Congress, Smithsonian Institute, National Archives in D.C., Bancroft Library, Sutro Library, and many universities and colleges. 

Somos Primos has served as a valuable resource to genealogists, historians, teachers, family researchers, etc.     We are hopeful that reaching out on the Internet will expand the concepts that all Latinos are historically connected, whether in the distant past or in the present, Somos Primos.               

Monthly notification is free.  To be notified when each new issue is uploaded, send an email and write Notification in the subject area. mimilozano@aol.com

RESOURCES

SHHAR's homepage http://members.aol.com/shhar lists the variety of resources available:

1. Networking database
2. Calendar of events 
3. Member expertise shared
4. Meetings and workshops
5. Hispanic Heritage Month 

Hispanic Heritage Month is an opportunity to promote an awareness of our contribution to the development of the United States.  In addition to being editor of Somos Primos, while chair of   the Hispanic Heritage Committee in Santa Ana, California,  I edited a collection of articles, accompanied with suggestions for classroom activities. With the financial support of the Orange County Register and the Excelsior (the Spanish language publication the Register), they were published and distributed to teachers and community leaders.  Those materials are now online and can be downloaded and used for free. 

 Link to HISPANIC HERITAGE free materials for teachers and community leaders.