Way back in 1919 the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) adopted the song “Lift every voice and sing” as the Black national anthem. Since that time, the song has inspired hope and faith.

Many people do not know that until the 1970 census there was no group identified as Hispanic or Latino! Filling out my first census in 1960, I looked for a category that acknowledged ancestry. I felt a thud in my heart as I checked the Caucasian box and heard my sweet grandmother’s voice, “Never forget where you came from.”