Latinization: How Latino Culture is Transforming the United States by Cristina Benitez

by Cristina Benitez
with Foreword by Henry Cisneros

"The purpose of this book is to go beyond the data and show precisely what this immigrant movement means to the United States of America. Statistics are a starting point, but the implications are found in the values and trends as we dig deeper to view pictures, hear music, and weave stories of Latinos in the U.S. We will explore the Latinization of our country in the 21st century and see how it is changing the face of America." 
—from Latinization

The news is filled with references to immigration policy and the expanding Latino population in America, and most people are aware that at 44 million and growing, the Latino population is the largest ethnic group in the United States. But what the news doesn't tell you is the impact and influence that Latino culture is having on the U.S.

Enter Cristina Benitez, founder of Lazos Latinos, a strategic branding and advertising company based in Chicago. Drawing on 20 years of experience in Hispanic marketing and a lifetime as a second generation Latina born in the United States, Benitez offers a fresh perspective on the contributions made by American Latinos in Latinization: How Latino Culture is Transforming the U.S.

You know about the pop celebrities and the baseball stars, but do you know about the contributions American Latinos are making in arts, the sciences, education, religion, and literature? And how about the influence on family life and values--the center of Latino culture?

"My goal is to create a positive perspective of the vibrant, strong-valued and determined Latino. Through our proud adaptation to the U.S. we can enrich rather than diminish this country with bilingualism, pluralism, and a desire to add rather than subtract American traditions" says Benitez.

Latinization will help marketers craft enticing advertising messages targeting this lucrative market segment (the Selig Center for Economic Growth estimates that Latino purchasing power will reach $1.2 billion in 2011). Corporations will learn how to develop Latino leadership and achieve true corporate diversity; and everyone will be able to better understand the value of this growing population.

Henry Cisneros notes, "As her reasoned explanations help Americans understand the new faces, the new accents, the new last names, this book will do its part to unleash the potential of these new Americans. Latinization sands down the raw edges of fear and suspicion with facts and comprehension; it opens the prospect of a nation whose best days are yet ahead."

With wisdom from 20 Latino experts, key insights to help marketers understand the value of cultural relevancy, and marketplace examples of how Latinos are influencing the U.S. with language, music, food, literature, religion, and much more, Latinization helps explain why Latino culture is here to stay.

(144 pp., hardcover, ISBN 978-0-9786602-5-3; 2007)