Review on Netflix Special: “Latin History for Morons”
John Leguizamo’s Netflix Special: “Latin History for Morons”
Unless you have been living under a rock or your wifi is out you have probably seen it advertised in your Netflix queue. John Leguizamo’s new Netflix special “Latin History for Morons” came on Netflix not too long ago and is right in line with the purpose of Platform Latino’s mission of promoting the Latin history the United States. Leguizamo mixes in his comedy expertise to simmer the top of how much American History involves Latinos. We have been here before America was America. Hell our Spanish ancestors were the ones who sent Columbus over to find the new world. Although he brought sickness and disease, which whipped out the majority of the native people we as Latinos share that as part of our history.
“If you don’t see yourself represented outside of yourself, you just feel invisible.”
John shares his struggles in explaining to his son Latino Heroes he could use for his school project. They aren’t readily available in normal history texts. Also as Latinos it’s hard to identify with the historical role models when we don’t share the same background, language or history. This is why I was glad to see and hear his examples and his passion to use his stardom to bring light on this void in American History. Most times, we focus on the negatives but at times, we need to really dig and find the truths and successes we have had and celebrate these milestones. You can tell he put in actual research into this show that he has been performing on Broadway this past year. He quotes many books, sources, and historical figures, which brings light into how much we have been involved in the history of the United States. Here is a great link to a source that outlines many of the books referenced. It definitely expanded my reading list.
How do you expect to have a Latin Hero for your son if you don’t have one for yourself?
This quote hit close to the heart because as I build PlatformLatino I haven’t identified a Latino(a) hero I look up to myself. To be honest I am using this as a portal to learn more about Latino(a) history in the United States and to also cast more of a positive light on our successes but I should also dig deep in finding out who is my Latin Hero.
“My Hero is Me!”
We are all heroes in our own way and we need to promote that and let others see what we are doing to better the community as a whole. It could be anything from helping the homeless, to editing your friends resume we can all do small acts of kindness to better the world. Make sure you are your own Hero first because you need to believe in yourself first to grow to your full potential.
All in all, it was a great special that mixed amazing much needed topics with a light comedic touch. I’d like to hear in the comments what you thought of the special and the takeaways you took from the show.