Students celebrated National Hispanic Heritage Month with music, dancing and food on Sept. 20 at Early College High School on Dallas College's Brookhaven College.
In addition to music and dancing, students created posters and prepared food to share from the Latin American countries where their families came.
National Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 each year and was established in 1958 as Hispanic Heritage Week by President Lyndon Johnson. President Ronald Reagan expanded it to a 30-day period in 1988, and it was enacted into law on Aug. 17, 1988. According the National Hispanic Heritage Month website, hosted by the U.S. Library of Congress, the purpose is to celebrate "the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America."
Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua celebrate the anniversary of their independence on Sept. 15. Mexico and Chile celebrate their independence days on Sept. 16 and Sept. 18.