City of Milwaukee officially recognizes Hispanic Heritage Month as annual celebration

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) --The city of Milwaukee is officially recognizing 'Hispanic Heritage Month' as an annual celebration, after a resolution was passed by the Common Council Thursday morning.

This is considered a big step for Milwaukee and the Hispanic community. Seven new resolutions were approved by councilmembers during their meeting, and among them included Hispanic Heritage Month. All councilmembers voted in favor of the resolution.

"Resolution designating National Hispanic Heritage Month is an annual official city event, authorizing the acceptance of contributions and adding the event to the Give MKE online crowdfunding platform," said James Owczarski, city clerk. 

The month has been recognized by the federal government since 1968 and is celebrated all over the U.S.

Milwaukee's 8th District Alderwoman JoCasta Zamarripa, the first Latina alderwoman in Milwaukee said it’s about time this happened.

"I'm not sure what the delay was, perhaps now because we have the first Latino serving as president of the Common Council and of course our numbers, you know the growth of Latinos in Milwaukee really saved the day per the last Census," she said. "If it wasn't for our population growth and our Latino community, Milwaukee would have experienced an even greater loss of population and I think because of all those things combined, now is the time."

Hispanic Heritage Month runs from Sept. 15 - Oct. 15. It is meant to recognize and celebrate all the diverse cultures within the Hispanic community across the nation.