Latin America

Latin America affects Florida, the Southwest and California in many ways. Three of the most obvious are food, holidays, and the people. These influences are mainly for the good though some can have negative influence as well.

The food found in the Southwest is very similar to that of Latin America. Though some of the foods and restaurants aren't exactly the same or as good, they still come across as being from Mexico. Taco Bell is a great example of this. The food is nothing like what you would find in Mexico yet their slogan implies it is what you would get at the Mexican border. Other restaurants such as Mi Amigos serve better food and even their name is in Spanish. (Even though the name should be mis amigos, which shows they don't know proper grammar!)

In the Southwest we celebrate many holidays that are celebrated in Mexico and Latin America. Cinco de Mayo is celebrated throughout Mexico as well as in some of the border states of the U.S. It would be very odd to go to Michigan or some northern state and see a huge Cinco de Mayo celebration.

The language of Mexico is spoken throughout the Southwest as well. In many parts of our state you may find Spanish speaking only areas. Also the people of Latin America are found throughout Florida and the Southwest. In Florida it is not uncommon to find illegal immigrants. This affects the U.S. in a bad way, it takes away jobs that our citizens could have and increases the number of citizens that don't pay taxes yet still get our freedoms.

Over all these influences from the Southwest affect us in a good way and are not a worry. From a certain point of view you could say that the Southwest actually is a part of Latin America because of the culture reflected in everyday life.