ABSTRACT
Th e term Latino refers to a group, which includes descendants of the inhabitants of territories incorporated by the United States, immigrants from several countries, and people of various educational levels, who speak diff erent languages1 and engage in multiple literacies and cultural practices. Th e panethnic conception of Latinos in the United States, however, carries the burden of representing a monocultural group that is oft en represented as the paragon of what is wrong with society. Balibar (1990) argues certain national/cultural groups are demonized, ascribed negative stereotypes, and marginalized to fulfi ll a scapegoat role. Th e confl uence of sociopolitical, historical, and cultural legacies (e.g., Santa Ana, 2002) mark Latinos and the only language they are mistakenly associated with as the target of these negative projections.
