The culture of African American and Hispanic people is often overlooked and harshly judged in the United States. Beliefs, history, and the difference of language create barriers and isolate such minorities from the dominant group. As a result, the narrowing of possibilities and potential is inevitably formed. Being the two largest minorities in the United States, according tothe Census Bureau's statistics claiming thatthe Hispanic population reached up to 37 million in July 2001 while the African American population came to 36.1 million, proves that it is very necessary that African Americans and Hispanics support one another as leading groups through political and social obstacles, so that there can be a better social and economic status in minority groups.Minorities such as African Americans and Hispanics are significantly underrepresented in the government decisions, and as a result the minorities’ needs are unusually met. As the leading minorities, African Americans and Hispanics need to work as a team, so that the well being of all ethnic groups in the United States can be attainable. We need to go out and vote for bills and representatives that show concern with not only our own ethnic group, but all other ethnicities. Politics have a great say in the future’s achievements, so we need to be informed of the bills that will affect our opportunities. Once we start taking surrounding groups into consideration we will become bigger in regards of support and it will be more likely for us to gain outside approval by those with political power. Many societies are often lured into pre-judgment and ethnocentrism as a result of ignorance. As minorities, African Americans and Hispanics should know better that to imitate the oppressor by putting down one another’s cultural values. However many minorities lack the education needed to understand cultural differences, so we often clash regardless of our similarities of being discriminated groups throughout history and in the United States. For this exact reason, educational institutions must continue to support the needs of African American students and of the growing Hispanic population. We have to learn more about each other so that we can strengthen our identity and utilize our potential to the highest level possible. As leading minorities in a powerful country, African Americans and Hispanics are faced with more opportunity in reaching an end to the correlation between poverty and race. The abuse of power has evidently made way for a backwards world for some groups, and it is time to accept others’ support and trust our neighbors leaving cultural and biological differences aside. Sacrifice, such as making oneself vulnerable to change and perhaps failure is the only path to accomplishment. Through first hand experience, African American and Hispanic individuals know the critical damage that oppression places on small groups. When two minorities work together though, their voice is louder and is then able to be heard in political, cultural, and community issues, and it is in our hands to make this cry for advancement be acknowledged.
