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13 Times Latinos Filled Us With Hope And Pride In 2016

EP4PRO, December 29th, 2016, in ep4records

Even in the darkest moments of 2016, Latinos offered us a ray of hope.

Latinos shone bright this year and accomplished historic feats along the way. Lin-Manuel Miranda dazzled his way to a Pulitzer on the Broadway stage, tennis player Monica Puig won Puerto Rico’s first gold medal and “Orange is the New Black” star Dascha Polanco became a body positive role model on the red carpet.

Here are 13 times (to name only a few) that Latinos filled us with pride in 2016.

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When Alejandro G. Irritu & Emmanuel Lubezki proved they’re unstoppable

Matt Sayles/AP

The year was off to a winningstart when Mexico’s Alejandro G. Irritu won Best Director for “The Revenant” at the Academy Awards, making him the first director to win two back-to-back Oscars in 65 years.

Mexican cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki also made history with “The Revenant,” with whichhe won his third consecutiveOscar inthe Best Cinematography category.He’d won for “Birdman” and “Gravity” in previous years.

When Chile won its first Oscar for Best Animated Short

Dan MacMedan via Getty Images

“Bear Story,” an 11-minute film from Chilean filmmakers Gabriel Osorio and Pato Escala, won theOscar for Best Animated Short. Itwas the first Chilean filmto even be nominated in the category, reports the LA Times.

When Monica Puig won Puerto Ricos FIRST Olympic gold medal

Clive Brunskill via Getty Images

Puerto Ricans on the island and throughout the diaspora lost their minds this summer when tennis player Monica Puig won the islands first ever Olympic gold medal at the Rio Olympics.

I think I united a nation, Puig said in an emotional interview following her amazing performance. And I just love where I come from.

When Laurie Hernandez gave a badass performance at the Olympics

Harry How via Getty Images

Laurie Hernandez absolutely crushed it at her first-ever Olympic games. The bubbly teen, who wasthe first U.S.-born Latina to join the U.S. Olympic gymnastics team since 1984 and the youngest member of the the #FinalFive, won a gold medal inthe team all-around finaland a silver medal duringthe women’s beam competition.

And the gymnast didn’t stop there. Hernandezwent on to prove her talent on the dance floor when shecompeted and won Season 23 of “Dancing with the Stars.”

When Catherine Cortez Masto became the first Latina elected to the Senate

Ethan Miller via Getty Images

div class=”listicle__slide-caption” js-image-caption”>Former Nevada attorney general Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) made history in November when she became the first Latina elected to the U.S. Senate.

I’m proud to be Nevada’s 1st female and our nation’s 1st Latina senator, Masto, who is of Mexican descent, tweeted in the wee hours of Nov. 9. Its about time our government mirrors the diversity of our nation.

We couldnt agree more.

When Adriano Espaillat became the first formerly undocumented immigrant elected to Congress

Bill Clark via Getty Images

Adriano Espaillat won the seat representing the 13th Congressional District in New York on election night, making him the first Dominican-American to be elected to Congress. The 62-year-old politician is also now the first formerly undocumented congressman in history.

When Bomba Estreos Soy Yo became a self-love anthem for brown girls

Colombia’s Bomba Estreo released the music video for their hit song Soy Yo, and garnered an outpouring of love from fans.The unapologetically quirky performance from the videos star, Sarai Gonzalezs, has been lauded as an ode to little brown girls everywhere.

The message of this video is just to be yourself and not care what anyone else thinks no matter what, 11-year-old Gonzalez told NBC in September. Im proud to be a part of this video because Ive overcome bullying.

When Lin-Manuel Miranda became the MVP of 2016

Amanda Edwards via Getty Images

Lin-Manuel Miranda has had an incredibly busy and successful year. Not only did his Broadway sensation Hamilton: An American Musical win a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album in February, but it also won 11 Tony awards in Juneand was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

And with one of thesongs he composed for Disneys 2016 animated film Moana garnering pre-Oscar buzz, the 36-year-old New York native could beon track to become the youngest person to win an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and a Tony — a coveted combination otherwise known as an EGOT.

Miranda also used his platform this year to talk about issues he truly cares about, like Puerto Ricos debt crisis.

I have a lot of family who are struggling in Puerto Rico, thats not an abstract issue to me, that is a life or death issue occurring with my family, he shared in June.

When undocumented valedictorians schooled the country

Brian Ach via Getty Images

During her high school graduation in June, Yale-bound valedictorian Larissa Martinez revealed she was undocumented. I am one of the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the shadows, she shared. I decided to stand before you today and reveal these unexpected realities because this might be my only chance to convey the truth to all of you that undocumented immigrants are people too.

Martinez’s speech followed a similar statement from fellow Texan Mayte Lara Ibarra. The week prior, Ibarra tweeted photos from her high school graduation, in which she shared her GPA, the fact that shed been awarded a full ride to the University of Texas Austin and is undocumented.

When a queer Latina author was tapped to write Marvels America

Courtesy of Gabby Rivera

Author Gabby Rivera represented queer Latinxs in a major way in 2016. She debuted Juliet Takes A Breath, a YA novel about a Puerto Rican lesbian from the Bronx in January. And in November, it was announced that Rivera had been tapped towritethe story for Marvels first queer Latina superhero, America.

The first issue of the comic will be released in March 2017. We cant wait!

When Carmelo Anthony fought for black lives

Andrew Burton via Getty Images

In the wake of Julys fatal police shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, NBA star Carmelo Anthony used his platform to speak out against police brutality and social injustice.

He, along with LeBron James, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade, opened the 2016 ESPY Awards with a powerful message urging athletes to speak out against police brutality and social injustice.

We cannot ignore the realities of the current state of America, Anthony, whose late father,Carmelo Iriarte,was a member of the Young Lords, said. The events of the past week have put a spotlight on the injustice, distrust and anger that plague so many of us. The system is broken. The problems are not new, the violence is not new and the racial divide definitely is not new. But the urgency to create change is at an all-time high.

When Gina Rodriguez celebrated young lady bosses

Rich Polk via Getty Images

Gina Rodriguez was on a mission to give credit where credit was due in 2016. In addition to launching her movement Mondays series on Instagram, where she highlights the accomplishments of Latinos in media, the Chicago-born boricua also produced and hosted the first annual Young Womens Honors in December.

I want to infuse [the media] with heroes that look like them, that are from similar backgrounds or similar cultures, similar communities, that allow them to have a blueprint for a life that they can have themselves, she explained in a promo video for the event.

Mission accomplished.

When Dascha Polanco became a body positive role model

Theo Wargo via Getty Images

div class=”listicle__slide-caption” js-image-caption”>Dominican-American actress Dascha Polanco was a constant source of body-positivity throughout 2016, shutting down body shamers, calling out designers who refused to dress her and rocking a curve-hugging catsuit and a fierce AF bodysuit – jacket combo to NYFW in September.Polanco told Vogue in August that she wants to break barriers and prove that even though Im a size 8 or 10, I still can look as great as someone whos a size 0.

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