Detroit celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month
(CBS DETROIT) - In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, Amyre Makupson highlights a Wayne County organization helping to keep the Hispanic culture thriving in Detroit while also lending a hand to those in need.
More than half a million Hispanic Americans are living and working in the state of Michigan, with much of the population concentrated in Detroit.
According to the U.S. Census, the Latino demographic continues to rise across the mitten, but that doesn't mean equal access to resources and opportunities are readily available.
"Being Latino in Detroit, we're very proud of who we are," said Angela Reyes, a lifelong Detroiter. "The Hispanic community is probably close to about 15% of the population in the city of Detroit. And we've been here for over 100 years. So a lot of people don't realize we're not all newcomers.
"We have issues of unemployment and poverty and a lack of resources for our community. And then you compound that with some people's immigration status, which can be very scary for some folks, and they won't be able to access some of the other resources, especially if there's no language access or people that are bilingual."
So Reyes decided to do something about it.
"The Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation is a community-based nonprofit in southwest Detroit. I started from my living room 27 years ago. And now I just live here," she said.
Hispanic Heritage Month runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 in coordination with Hispanic independence days.
CBS News Detroit will continue to highlight Metro Detroit celebrations over the next four weeks.