Hispanic club celebrates culture

During the month of September and part of October, Montgomery Blair High School's Hispanic club will participate in many events that will celebrate heritage.

According to student Johnny Bustos, the club is engaging in activities that will help the members of the club to celebrate their culture. "There's a dance competition for all Montgomery County Public Schools. We're also going to be a lot of community service," he said.

This year, one of the sponsors the Hispanic club, Elba Castro, is making an attempt to make the club more meaningful for the students. "I think that this year we want to spread how the month is important to our culture, more than focusing on dancing or showing people doing the superficial things," she said. "It's more important to spread information."

The club was founded at the old Blair, and when the new Blair was opened, Castro became the new sponsor of the club and she has a personal attachment to the club. "The club is so important to me because this club is part of my culture," she said. "Hispanic kids need a safe haven."

Junior Silvia Hueso believes that this year the club will become more engaged and productive. "Last year, the club didn't really do anything, so me and my friends were like well, let's try to make the club be something this year," she said.

Bustos believes that the club attracts its members because of the social interaction that occurs at their meetings. "It is important to me because we get to tell people what we think," he said. "All Hispanic kids together, our perspectives."

Although the Hispanic club is celebrating this month, many of the members do not believe that Hispanic Heritage Month is recognized enough in the United States. "Most people don't even know that September is the month for Hispanic people," Bustos said. "I think they should mention it more like they do for African Americans in February."

On September 4, 1974, Congress declared that September 10 to 16 would be known as Hispanic Heritage week. More than a decade later, on April 17, 1988, congress approved another law, which proclaimed that the week would become a 31-day period from September 15 to October 15.

The club meets Thursdays after school from 2:15 to 3:30