When America started officially honoring Hispanic heritage in 1968, it was a one-week celebration. Though the country now marks National Hispanic Heritage Month, acknowledging how generations of Hispanic Americans have influenced and contributed to our nation, it doesn’t have to end when that month is over. This episode of Equal Time reflects on the issues and challenges facing the community and the country now and into the future.

Equal Time host Mary C. Curtis speaks with Larry Gonzalez, an experienced participant in policy-making at the federal and state levels and a founder and principal of the communications firm The Raben Group, and Teresa Puente, an assistant professor who teaches journalism at California State University Long Beach and has spent her career reporting on immigration and Latino issues in the U.S., with extensive reporting from Mexico.