Latino USA

Hungry for History

25 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA brings you an episode of the Hungry for History podcast. Here’s a little-known fact you might not have known... The beer indust...

Immensely Invisible

21 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How is ICE handling complaints of sexual abuse from detainees? Maria Hinojosa teams up with Zeba Warsi, two immigrant women and journalists from diffe...

Willie Perdomo Comes Home

18 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the early 1990s, Willie Perdomo was a teenager growing up in East Harlem. He saw and experienced firsthand a tumultuous moment in New York City, in...

Love & Walkouts

14 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today we're bringing you an episode from our vault — a love story of student activism. We're taking you back to 1968, when thousands of students par...

Steven Melendez on Opening Doors to Ballet

11 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Steven Melendez thinks a lot about accessibility in the world of classical dance. Steven got his start in ballet at just seven years old, as part of a...

Hector Galán: A Life Documenting Marginalized Stories

07 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA continues to celebrate its 30th anniversary, bringing you conversations with some of the most influential Latinos and Latinas of the last t...

Resistance And Loss In The Age Of COVID-19 With Edwidge Danticat

04 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

According to Haitian-American author Edwidge Danticat, stories are a way of finding inspiration and comfort during the times we’re living through. H...

The Lone Legislator

30 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 1919, an intrepid Texas state representative, José Tomás Canales, decided to lead an investigation into the abuse of power by the Texas Rangers. ...

Creating the Sound of Latino USA

27 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA has cycled through quite a few theme songs in its 30 years. There was the original theme, with acoustic guitar and soft woodwinds, followed...

En Español

23 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For years, Anita Flores carried shame: She was a second-generation half-Peruvian who barely spoke Spanish. She pretended she didn’t care; she subtly...

You Want to Talk About Hot Cheetos?

20 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We tackle the Flamin’ Hot Cheetos controversy and dive into why this story is so much more than just about a processed snack food but a story about ...

No Strings Attached

16 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when people living in poverty get a stable income from the government? More than 100 guaranteed income pilot programs have launched acros...

How I Made It: No Te Va Gustar

13 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For over 25 years, Uruguayan band No Te Va Gustar has been filling concert venues across Latin America. With their mix of pop, rock, reggae, ska, and ...

The Clinic

09 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA goes inside the biggest free health clinic in the country, which serves only people without insurance. There are nearly 28 million uninsure...

Healing in Uvalde

06 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA shares an episode of the In The Thick podcast. Maria Hinojosa and Julio Ricardo Varela reflect on the one-year anniversary of the...

Uvalde Rising

02 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One year after the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Latino USA and Futuro Investigates explore how families in the community ...

Julieta Venegas’ Search for a Simple Life

30 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Mexican singer-songwriter, Julieta Venegas, took a seven-year break before releasing her latest album, a journey of self-discovery in 10 songs tha...

Restaurant Royalty: Zarela and Aarón

26 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For mother and son chefs Zarela Martinez and Aarón Sanchez, educating others about the cuisines that make up Mexico is a family tradition. Zarela and...

José Ralat, Taco Editor

23 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

José Ralat is the Taco Editor at Texas Monthly Magazine and consequently the only taco editor in the United States. In his book, “American Tacos: A...

The Migrant Student Club

19 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over 300,000 students in the U.S. migrate every year to work in agriculture, from spring to fall. At a high school in South Texas, when these students...

Mariana Enríquez On Using Horror to Process Historical Trauma

16 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Mariana Enríquez is one of the best-known writers of a growing literary trend in Latin America that uses the horror genre to denounce the violent rea...

Portrait Of: Linda Ronstadt

12 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We continue to celebrate our 30th anniversary, bringing you the voices of some of the most influential Latinos and Latinas in the last three decades. ...

Gangs, Murder, and Migration in Honduras

09 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We start today’s episode at El Edén—the center in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, where child migrants are processed after being deported from Mexico a...

30 Años: An Oral History of Latino USA

05 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On May 5th, 1993, the first episode of Latino USA aired on more than 50 public radio stations across the U.S. Thirty years later, we look back at the ...

How I Made It: Maná

02 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The rock en español group, Maná, is one of the most successful Spanish-language rock bands of this generation. They've sold over 40 million records ...

Colombia's Secret War Against Civilians

28 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Years ago, Gloria Martinez’s son went out to look for a job and never came back. Gloria would spend months searching for him, and she wasn’t alone...

Motive

25 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA brings you an episode of the Motive podcast, from WBEZ Chicago. Chicago gangs: Real people. Real stories. A way forward. The new ...

Head Down: Part II

21 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

At the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles last year, President Joe Biden outlined his plan to reduce the number of migrants seeking asylum at the S...

The Pulso Podcast

18 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA brings you an episode of The Pulso Podcast. Texas 1951. Farmworker Pete Hernandez walks into a bar with a rifle and shoots anoth...

Head Down - Part 1

14 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, Diego and Mario joined the U.S. government-sponsored H-2A visa program, leaving their families in their home country of Mexico to harvest blu...

Kate's Summer

11 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The summer of 2020 was filled with uncertainty as more than 20 million people in the U.S. were left unemployed — including Kate Bustamante’s paren...

Portrait Of: Gloria Estefan

07 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Gloria Maria Milagrosa Fajardo Garcia was a shy, quiet young woman who joined a band named the Miami Latin Boys. Although she had no plans of internat...

Party Crews: The Untold Story

04 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Latino USA we’re bringing you an episode from the newly released podcast series Party Crews: The Untold Story. For many Latinx kids in ...

Lorena’s 'Alcance'

31 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When pioneering trans activist Lorena Borjas first arrived in the U.S. in late May of 1981, she found both community and an epidemic. Through her expe...

Quiara Alegria Hudes on Writing Through Grief and Joy

28 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Quiara Alegria Hudes decided to take a break from the theater world. Tired of a white, male-dominated lands...

'Argentina, 1985': History and Memory

24 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Antonia Cereijido interviews former prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Luis Moreno Ocampo about his real life experience, which inspired t...

State of Exception: An Abolitionist Poet Visits El Salvador

21 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Christopher Soto is a Salvadoran-American poet, activist and prison abolitionist. He is based in Los Angeles, but has remained tied to his parent’s ...

Villano Antillano and Ana Macho Dream of Queer and Trans Futures

17 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Villano Antillano and Ana Macho are two Puerto Rican trans and non-binary musicians making waves in the music industry. In their latest projects, Vill...

An Unwinnable War

14 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA shares an episode of the USA v. García Luna podcast, from Futuro Investigates and Lemonada Media. Genaro García Luna’s trial ...

'Suavemente' — The Merengue War

10 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For this week’s Latino USA, we’re bringing you an episode from the newly released podcast series from WNYC Studios and Futuro Studios, La Brega, T...

How I Made It: Ayodele Casel

07 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For Ayodele Casel tap dancing is magic. As a young high school student, she dreamed of one day dancing like Ginger Rogers as she recreated Ginger’s ...

Teresa Urrea: The Mexican Joan of Arc

03 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the late 1800s, Teresa Urrea was a superstar. She was a ‘curandera,’ or healer, a revolutionary, and a feminist. At only 19 years old she was e...

Daniel Suárez: Making History With NASCAR

28 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Daniel Suárez made history in 2022 when he became the first Mexican-born driver to win a NASCAR Cup Series race, but the road to this feat has been a...

I Wonder If I Take You Home: Freedom in Freestyle

24 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For this week’s Latino USA, we’re bringing you an episode from the newly released podcast series from WNYC Studios and Futuro Studios, La Brega, T...

Digging Into Mexican Food With Chef Margarita Carrillo

21 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The food of Mexico is diverse, complex, and beloved across the world. Don’t just take it from us—in 2010, traditional Mexican cuisine was added to...

Portrait Of: Jorge Drexler

17 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Uruguayan singer-songwriter Jorge Drexler knows what it's like to live different lives within one. An ENT doctor until his early 30s, he then decided ...

Valle de Sueños: The Beginning of the End

14 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA shares the first episode from the Valle de Sueños podcast. We launch Valle de Sueños on Our Lady of Guadalupe feast day to hono...

'La Lucha Sigue': Chicano Teachers Now and Then

10 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

More than 25 years ago, two teachers in New Mexico were fired for refusing to stop teaching Chicano History in their classrooms; today, that history r...

“El gran varón” — ¿Quién era Simón?

07 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Esta semana en Latino USA, te compartimos un episodio del nuevo podcast “La Brega: La experiencia boricua en 8 canciones”, producida por WNYC Stud...

El Gran Varón: Who Was Simón?

03 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For this week’s Latino USA, we’re bringing you an episode from the newly released podcast series from WNYC Studios and Futuro Studios, La Brega, T...

Portrait Of: Esmeralda Santiago LIVE in NYC

31 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, Latino USA teamed up with the Unterberg Poetry Center at the 92nd Street Y to put on an event honoring the 25th anniversary of Esmeralda Sant...

The Breakdown: The Legacy of ‘Dora the Explorer’

27 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 1998, three television writers tasked with creating the next hit children's show came up with the idea of a young girl who would go on adventures a...

Cecilia Gentili's Revolutionary Ask

24 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Trans activist, actress and author, Cecilia Gentili, knows the power of stories. Whether she is working at her company Trans Equity Consulting, writin...

Into Natalia Lafourcade's Inner Garden

20 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Mexican singer-songwriter Natalia Lafourcade embraces contrasts in her music. Look no further than her latest album, “De Todas las Flores,” where ...

The Call Is Coming From Inside the House

17 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Last November, Maria Hinojosa visited Howard University in Washington, DC to celebrate its inaugural Democracy Summit. The Summit was organized by the...

Nikole Hannah-Jones: Beyond the 1619 Project

13 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones rose to instant recognition when she published the 1619 Project in 2019. Since then she’s rece...

iLe on Song and Protest

10 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For Puerto Rican singer-songwriter Ileana Cabra — known by her stage name, iLe — music has always been a way to reflect and comment on the world a...

Nacho's Special

06 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Nachos: They’re one of the most popular snack foods in the United States, and the name is instantly recognizable worldwide. Bright yellow nacho chee...

Portrait Of: Rubén Blades

03 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Rubén Blades is a singer, songwriter, actor, lawyer, and politician. He was born in Panama and became a New Yorker in 1974. After four decades in the...

The Diary of an ‘Undesirable’

30 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In 1945, 20-year-old Anthony Acevedo was held in captivity with other American soldiers inside a Nazi concentration camp called Berga. There, the sold...

¡Cómete Ese Miedo! With Maria Hinojosa

27 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Latino USA we feature this interview with Maria Hinojosa on the Brown Enough podcast. Cómete ese miedo —or eat your fear— is what Pu...

Valley of Contrasts

23 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In most of the country, when someone says they are going to Coachella it means they are going to a music festival. But for many who grew up in the Coa...

USA v. García Luna: Episode 2 ‘The Mexican Hoover’

20 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

From CSI to Donna Summer, García Luna was fascinated by anything American. Several U.S. officials said that García Luna was the person they trusted ...

Rafael Reif on Leading —and Leaving— MIT

16 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When Rafael Reif steps down as president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at the end of December 2022, there will no longer be a Latino pr...

Identity, Language and Community Through Video Games

13 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

After a challenging experience as a computer science major, Samantha fell in love with making video games. But more than the technical aspects of vide...

USA v. García Luna: Episode 1 ‘Untouchable’

09 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A Mexican-American journalist and a Cuban-Mexican investigative reporter walk into a recording studio with a bottle of tequila, and reveal an investig...

Feeling Like the Other

06 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the special presentation of the In The Thick political podcast produced by Futuro Media, Maria and Julio are joined by Daniela Pierre-Bravo, repor...

Death by Policy: Crisis in the Arizona Desert

02 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this year-long investigation from Futuro Investigates, we dig into how the Border Patrol’s decades-long deterrence policies create a deadly funne...

White Hats: Rangers and 'Rinches'

29 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today, we are sharing with Latino USA listeners the first episode of “White Hats,” a new podcast by Texas Monthly. In this episode Host Jack Herre...

By Right Of Discovery

25 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On Thanksgiving Day, hundreds of people gather on Alcatraz Island, the famous former prison and one of the largest tourist attractions in San Francisc...

Confusing Latin American Sayings and What They Mean

22 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a taste of the comedy podcast Hyphenated, by Latina comedians Joanna Hausmann and Jenny Lorenzo. In this episode, Jenny and Joanna ...

Voting for Democracy: The Midterms

18 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For this year’s midterms, Latino USA is teaming up with Futuro Media’s political podcast In The Thick for a special post-election roundtable discu...

The Ballot Boogeymen

15 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA is featuring “The Ballot Boogeymen,” a podcast by Reveal, which talks about a new rash of laws and agencies criminalizing and...

The Last Cup

11 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Introducing a new podcast by NPR and Futuro Studios: The Last Cup, a podcast about soccer and the immigrant experience As Lionel Messi rose up the ran...

Narsiso Martinez: Depicting Farmwork in Art

08 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Visual artist Narsiso Martinez uses materials, like discarded produce boxes and dusty charcoal, to depict intimate scenes about the life and labor of ...

Portrait Of: Carmen Rita Wong

04 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Author and journalist, Carmen Rita Wong, grew up believing that her father was “Papi” Peter Wong, a Chinese American man. At least, that’s what ...

The Latino Swing Voter

01 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the special presentation of the In The Thick political podcast produced by Futuro Media, Maria and Julio are joined by Jennifer Medina, a national ...

The Quevedos

28 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA producer Sayre Quevedo grew up having only met two members of his blood family, his mom and his brother. His father left before he was born...

Racism and the LA City Council

25 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On October 9, the Los Angeles Times of a conversation between now-former L.A. City Council President Nury Martínez, fellow Councilmembers Gil Cedillo...

Ever Since the Oil: Part Two

21 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Between the years of 2010 and 2020, North Dakota saw a growth rate of almost 150% of Latinos and Latinas, according to the U.S. Census —the biggest ...

Brazil on Fire

18 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA is proud to present an episode of Brazil on Fire, a podcast produced in partnership between The Real News and NACLA. Using key issues like ...

Ever Since the Oil: Part One

14 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

North Dakota saw the biggest growth rate of Latinos and Latinas in the United States between 2010 and 2020, according to the U.S. Census. Why? Many pe...

Rediscovering: Killed Through The Border Fence

11 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA is proud to present an episode from The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com Rediscovering: Killed Through The Border Fence podcast. Nearly a...

‘We Can’t Let Up’: Arizona’s Midterm Battle

07 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As a traditionally Republican state, Arizona hadn’t seen a Democratic presidential candidate win since 1996. But then, in 2020, the state became a b...

Detention By Design

04 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As recently as 1955, there were virtually no immigrants held in detention in the U.S. Today, the federal government holds tens of thousands each day, ...

Minden, NV: The Last Sundown Siren

30 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA is proud to feature an episode from Futuro Studios and Higher Ground’s The Sum of Us podcast, Heather McGhee’s travel diary about the s...

Denice Frohman: Finding Poetry in Life

27 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Poet and spoken word artist Denice Frohman has been performing for more than 15 years now — you may have seen some past videos of her work go viral ...

The Little Black Dress: A Hidden History

23 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Before it was the classic dress we all know and many still love today, the little black dress was mostly worn by working-class shopgirls and domestics...

Bianca Graulau Reports From the Colony

20 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Bianca Graulau is an independent journalist who's been using TikTok and YouTube to tell you what’s going on in Puerto Rico—whether you live there ...

Responding With Dignity in Puerto Rico

16 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in September of 2017, there was a complete lack of government response, highlighting the stark reality of austeri...

Rubirosa: Haunted

13 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This week Latino USA is featuring the first episode of the Rubirosa podcast, a Witness Docs production. Imagine instead of James Bond it was… Jaime...

Latino USA: Live From L.A.

09 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This summer, Latino USA took a trip to the West Coast for a live show in Los Angeles — and now, we’re bringing that special evening to you! On thi...

Into the Fire

06 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For the past decade, Armando Perez has worked as a wildland firefighter with the Eldorado, California, Hotshot crew—an elite group that works in the...

Shaping a National Latino Museum

02 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What and who do you include in a national Latino museum? That’s a question that many have been asking since late 2020, when Congress green-lit the c...

Love and Lust With Yesika Salgado

30 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

We're still on summer break so we are sharing an interview from our archives with poet Yesika Salgado. She heads with Maria Hinojosa to the Hunts Poin...

Portrait Of: José Feliciano

26 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Latino USA is on summer break this week so we wanted to share one of our favorite recent interviews that we originally broadcast in early 2020. In thi...

Reclaiming the Outdoors with Hike Clerb

23 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Evelynn Escobar-Thomas grew up near a state park in Northern Virginia, but she never visited it. For Evelynn, who is a Black and Indigenous Guatemalan...

What About Electoral Power?

19 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this continuation of Latino USA’s 2022 midterms coverage, Maria welcomes her In The Thick co-host Julio Ricardo Varela and the following two gues...

The World Through Julio Torres’ Eyes

16 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

You probably haven’t met a comedian quite like Julio Torres. Julio’s work is highly visual and deeply inquisitive, often focusing on everyday obje...

Genias in Music: Petrona Martínez

12 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For the closing of our series Genias in Music, celebrating the contributions of women in their fields, we go to Colombia, where Petrona Martínez beca...