Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with WFYI

From September 15 to October 15, you can celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with WFYI programs that celebrate and explore the experiences of Hispanic and Latina/e/o/x people and their culture.

From awards presentations to documentaries, food to music, the voices and perspectives of so many people are on display here and we are excited to share them with you.

Awards:

Celebrate the recipients of the 35th annual Hispanic Heritage Awards. The evening includes performances and appearances by some of the country's most celebrated Hispanic artists and visionaries. The awards show, created by the White House to commemorate the establishment of Hispanic Heritage Month in America, honors awardees such as actress Ariana DeBose, rock band Los Lobos, Marvel Studios' Victoria Alonso, and rapper Daddy Yankee, alongside many more people who have had a huge impact on Hispanic representation in the American zeitgeist.

 

Podcasts:

One of the most recent episodes of WFYI podcast Cultural Manifesto has a special focus on Hispanic Heritage Month, featuring guest host Karla Lopez-Owens. You can tune in for an hour of historic and contemporary music from Hispanic Hoosier musicians, as you explore the full range of Latin music in Indiana, from the Chilean born composer Juan Orrego-Salas, to the Afro-Mexican rapper El Moreno Mexicano.

 

Documentaries:

POV: The Last Out follows three Cuban baseball players, who leave their families and risk exile in order to chase their dreams of playing the sport in the United States. This documentary chronicles their difficult journey, from multi-step immigration obstacles and learning English to the broken promises and dubious motives of agents.

The 1991 uprising in Washington D.C.'s Mount Pleasant was the start of a conversation about discrimination and civil rights between the police and the Latino/a community. In La Manplesa: An Uprising Remembered, experience the push for justice in a community who had endured policing and police brutality while feeling unseen and unheard, before the shooting of young Salvadoran Daniel Gomez.

Explore the life and music of Ramon "Chunky" Sanchez in Singing Our Way to Freedom. From his humble beginnings as a farmworker in Blythe, California to the dramatic moment when he received one of our nation's highest musical honors at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Chunky’s arc of transformation from marginalized farm kid to charismatic social activist shows how one person can mobilize people to change the world.

The abuse of immigrant labor is the dirty secret of Texas' construction boom. In Voces: Building the American Dream, learn about the crucial turning point when a movement rises to fight against the widepsread construction industry injustices unfolding across the state. Don't miss your chance to witness the shocking truths sit behind the hardworking immigrants who build the Ameircan Dream.

 

Cooking:

Chef Amalia Moreno-Damgaard and Yia Vang take us behind the scenes to showcase how a dish like Mole De Platano comes together in this episode of Relish. This popular Guatemalan dish tops fried plantains with a declisious mole sauce. Learn how to make this childhood favorite.

Pati's Mexican Table follows the chef, author, educatior and food writer on a journey into Mexico's history and culture. In each episode, Pati Jinich embarks upon an exciting and entertaining journey, where each dish serves as a point of departure into Mexico’s rich history and culture, Pati’s personal experiences, her family life, and her ongoing conversations with cooks in both Mexico and the US. You can also savor the sights, sounds and flavors of the U.S.-Mexico border alongside Pati Jinich as she experiences the region’s rich culture, people and cuisine in La Frontera with Pati Jinich.

In 1989, only one year after meeting each other in Mexico, Makoto, a Japanese man, and Maria, a Mexican woman, wed. Today, their three daughters dive into a deep discussion about their mixed race identities in Sushi Nachos. Featuring a Beyond the Lens interview with filmmaker Kei Matsumoto.

 

The Arts:

If Cities Could Dance sees KQED taking a closer look at the wide variety of dance steps that have originated within Latin America, from the salsa and bomba to the tango and bachata, amongst many others. Dance is how many people share their culture and stories, and you can experience everything from the queer salsa scene to the bomba in Puerto Rico.

 

Latinos in the Workplace:

Reaching for the Stars: The José Hernández Story tells the inspiring tale of the Central Valley astronaut. After three years and eleven rejections, Hernández was selected to leave Earth and became the first person to use the Spanish language in space.

American Masters documents an early participant in the environmental movement, U.S.-born Mexican American Ynés Mexía began her scientific career at age 51, leading botanical expeditions across Mexico, Central America, and South America. She became one of the most accomplished plant collectors of her time, discovering over 500 new plant species of which 50 are named in her honor.

During the COVID-19 epidemic, the concept of an "essential" worker has been a frqeuently discussed topic. Latinos Are Essential is a collection of unique and insightful short portraits and stories about Latinos who are serving as essential workers in a wide variety of jobs and/or services across the United States, even as the COVID 19 pandemic continues to disproportionately impact Latino and other communities of color.

 

Short Films:

Discover the candid perspectives of Latine actors, writers, producers, directors, and showrunners across generations as they dissect the ever-evolving issue of Latine representation in Hollywood in Lights, Camera, Acción. Featuring Edward James Olmos, John Leguizamo, Xolo Maridueña ("Cobra Kai"), Julissa Calderon ("Gentefied"), Peter Murrieta ("Mr. Iglesias"), Marvin Lemus ("Gentefied") and more.

The PBS Short Film Festival recently featured the short film Luciela. Luciela is six years old and loves her Papi. Her favorite holiday is the 4th of July because every year her Papi throws a huge party. He does one of the best firework shows in Lincoln Heights —their Latinx, immigrant neighborhood in Los Angeles. But this year he can’t, because he’s been deported. So she decides to set off a few sparks of her own.

Finally, you can explore an even wider range of programming on the hub page for PBS' Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration.