Hispanic Women and Their Thoughts of Black Men


By Brie Crites


 


She, New Jersey born and bred, stood in the doorway of the bedroom and said it with no shame or fear. She said, “Oh, I know I’m going to marry a Black man!”


 I’m not sure what surprised me more: the fact that she declared this so matter-of-factly or that she was Puerto Rican. She was a friend of a friend that didn’t know me all too well. But she could care less about how comfortable we were around each other. She knew without a doubt what her future held.


And regardless of the fact that her female friends and family only dated Puerto Rican men, she had chosen a different route.  I wasn’t sure what her reasoning was until she went on.


She explained how attracted she was to Black men and their sense of confidence, physical features, and well, their swag. Apparently, she had not seen these characteristics as evident in her fellow Puerto Rican men, and Black men had swept her away.


Black men are seen in so many different lights.  Some see them as loving. Some see them as hateful. Some see them as necessary, while others see Black men as optional and even a burden.


But, maybe it isn’t the Black man’s character that has originated this description. Instead, maybe it is the perspective from which they are seen that has everything to do with how they are described.


For the most part, our society has heard and isn’t astonished by the perspective of other Blacks or the widely known view from White individuals. It is the Hispanic perspective that is not necessarily popular or even considered by our society. And in particular, the opinion of Hispanic women on Black men seems to be quite silent.


            My friend, also a New Jersey native and Puerto Rican, had a different opinion. Although she had many Black male friends and some bad experiences with Hispanic men, her preference of a man to date and marry was a Hispanic man.


She stated that she admires that Black men don’t seem to discriminate while dating. She said that only a confident man could date different races without caring what others think. She explained that Black men don’t shy from the limelight because they seem to never show fear.


“But Black men can sometimes be underachievers,” she stated. She went on to describe her father who would hold down several jobs to make ends meet in her house as a young child.


She stated that even though she has seen so many Black men doing the same for their families, a majority of them leave the responsibility of raising their children to the Black women. This is something that she didn’t see too often in the Hispanic culture.


            Another friend, a Mexican American that has dated Black men, stated that her love for Black men is the same love that she has for all races. This friend stated that one trait that she enjoys is that Black men never seemed to care about her physical fitness, poverty-stricken background or broken family.


She didn’t feel like she had to “act out a role with Black men.” Instead, Black men embraced her for who she was and she never felt judged because many of them had been through similar situations in life.


            Black men, no matter how unappreciated, are a large staple in our society. They are seen in our families, neighborhoods, and even in the White House.


Regardless if mentioned or not, most people have an opinion about them. As our country’s population and immigration rates increase, one opinion that we will begin to hear more frequently is that of the Hispanic population.


Just like in any ethnicity or race, the Hispanic population will have both negative and positive feedback concerning Black men.


Some will enjoy and respect them. And others will never take the time to understand the strength and beauty in Black men. 


Either way, Black men are both noticed and prevalent in the world we live in.


Crites is a contributing writer for Regal Magazine, a publication dedicated to the African American community.

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