Latino USA

Long before Latin music ruled the airwaves and charts, Tejano was king… and there was one man at the center of it all: Johnny Canales. His impact on the music industry is undeniable. Johnny helped Selena Quintanilla skyrocket to success and he helped make many other Tejano artists highly visible. In this episode, Maria Hinojosa sits down with Adrian Arredondo and Myrna Perez, the directors of “Tak...

As a young boy, Frank Rojas watched his older sister shine at her quinceañera. He secretly longed for a celebration of his own, but knew that these coming of age parties were only for girls. Now, two decades later, the culture has changed and more boys are having their own quiceañeros. So Frank is throwing himself a double quince on his 30th birthday. On his own terms, but not without hesitation....

After the Supreme Court ruled that mandatory life sentences for juveniles were unconstitutional, a flurry of re-sentencings followed across the country. But for juvenile lifers in Tennessee, it was like nothing happened. What followed were several legal battles, culminating in a Tennessee Supreme Court decision that ultimately ruled the state’s sentencing unconstitutional. The Republican-led state...

“I am a political prisoner,” Jeanette Vizguerra said in an exclusive interview from inside a detention facility. She’s been a symbol of resistance for the immigrants rights movement since 2017 when she was recognized as one of Time’s 100 most influential people, after seeking sanctuary in a church to avoid deportation. She remained an outspoken activist and in March 2025 she was detained by ICE. I...

If some Latinos hear la doctora, it doesn’t evoke the image of a medical doctor. Instead, it’s that of a Cuban American attorney-turned-show host who sings her own theme song. In 2001, Doctora Polo had been practicing family law for over 20 years in Miami when she was hired to host a new court show on Telemundo that would later become Caso Cerrado. It often aired for multiple hours a day on Telemu...

Two years ago, 18-year-old Lisbeth Bencosme was shot four times on a sidewalk in Harlem. She was a new mom at the time, and it was her faja, a staple postpartum girdle for many Latinas, that would keep her alive until medics arrived. In this episode, we meet Lisbeth, a true badass New Yorker who takes us on her path healing from gun violence and postpartum depression, in a country where there’s li...

After World War II, Puerto Ricans began settling in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, drawn by economic opportunities among Mennonite farming communities. Several generations later, they’re honoring their history and reclaiming their identity as “Dutchiricans” within the Mennonite church—and beyond.  Today, the story of a Dutchirican matriarch —from her family’s migration from Puerto Rico to their adopt...

In the news this week: Pope Leo XIV, or Papa León 14, has been selected to lead the Catholic Church and its 1.4 billion congregation worldwide. And on his first moment in a global spotlight, he chose to speak… Spanish.  Robert Francis Prevost was born in Chicago but spent most of his life as a missionary and bishop in Peru, where he has citizenship. He’s the first-ever pope from the U.S. and the s...

In the early 70s, Miguel Angel Villavicencio was focused on making his most ambitious dream possible: to become a famous singer in Bolivia and across the world. And he was halfway there—his love songs were on the radio and he was appearing on TV. But to take his singing career truly international, he needed money. So he decided to work for Bolivia’s most powerful drug cartel in the 80s—a major sup...

The National TPS Alliance and seven plaintiffs, including Temporary Protected Status holder Cecilia González, recently sued the Trump administration for illegally terminating TPS for about 600,000 Venezuelans. Though a federal judge temporarily blocked the termination, the legal fight to defend the status, and to advocate for long-term immigration reform, continues. Latino USA is the longest-runni...

Pope Francis, history’s only Latin American pope, died on April 21st. As the cardinals of the world set to choose a new leader, we look back on Francisco's papacy, his most praised achievements and his most criticized shortcomings. Plus, how his leadership may influence the church for years to come. Guest host Fernanda Echavarri speaks with professor and feminist theologian Natalia Imperatori-Lee...

What began as an ordinary traffic stop for Kilmar Abrego Garcia escalated into a nightmare at the center of a Supreme Court decision. The immigrant Maryland father was deported to El Salvador’s mega prison because of an “administrative error.” But even at the Supreme Court’s direction, the Trump administration has still not brought Kilmar back. This case has tipped the scales: “We are in a moment...

This week, Latino USA shares episode 2 of Suave: Season 2 .  Suave can’t drink. He can’t smoke weed. He can’t travel. He can’t visit old prison friends, or basically have any interaction with the police. And that’s because even though he’s free, he’s on parole for a lifetime. In other words, he’s just serving his prison sentence on the outside. Sometimes all these rules make Suave ask himself, “Wi...

This week, Latino USA shares episode 1 of Suave: Season 2 .  Years have passed since Season One, and Suave is thriving. He’s got a great job. He’s on the news for his work on prison reform. He’s even got a new nickname on the block: Mr. Pulitzer. Suave is doing what he always dreamed of – and he’s making a real difference. It almost seems like “happily ever after.” Or is it?  Want to support our i...

Alejandro Heredia’s debut novel “Loca” has been praised as “quintessentially American”. It takes place in both the Dominican Republic and the Bronx, New York, where Alejandro was shaped into the person he is today. In this episode, Latino USA producer Reynaldo Leaños Jr. speaks with the Afro-Dominican author about his —and his family’s— migration journey to the United States, his queer awakening,...

On March 17, Honduran recording artist Aurelio Martínez died in a tragic plane crash. Aurelio was the voice of the Garifuna people and a fierce defender of their music in culture. Almost two decades ago producer Marlon Bishop became friends with Aurelio, living and traveling with him for several months. He shares the story of their time together. Latino USA is the longest-running news and culture...

What does it mean to be Latino/Latina/Latinx in 2025? Is Latinidad a fiction? Should Latino be considered a race? On this episode of Latino USA, Maria Hinojosa asks those questions in a conversation with Jean Guerrero, journalist and columnist, and Julissa Arce Raya, author and activist. They also speak about colorism, recent headlines, and how simply existing as a Latino today can make you a targ...

We’re doing something different! Today, Maria Hinojosa joins listeners for a special message announcing something new from Futuro. Been dreaming of immediate full season access, and behind the scenes chisme from your favorite shows at Futuro? We have too! Listen to hear more about what’s next for Futuro. To help us grow the future of journalism go to: futuromediagroup.org/joinplus The Futuro Plus...

This week Latino USA shares episode 1 of the podcast Don't Cross Kat . Kat Torres shows an Instagram-perfect life to her large following. She’s a Brazilian supermodel turned life coach who seems harmless but is hiding a secret. And when one of her followers goes missing in the U.S., one woman sets out to bring back her best friend. Paty won’t stop until she gets her friend out from under Kat’s spe...

In 2018, Producer Jeanne Montalvo reported on the choices her parents made when raising her in a bilingual household. Five years later, Jeanne’s two children both command the Spanish language. But the oldest, Martin, was 2.5 years old at the start of the pandemic and never learned English. This came with a series of challenges as he entered the school system in New York. One daycare even suggested...

“What the Trump administration is trying to do to Mr. Khalil is a blueprint, and if they are able to get away with it, then they will replicate it.” On March 8th, Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil was taken by immigration agents to a detention facility in Louisiana—without charges. He was taken because of his pro-Palestine activism on campus. Khalil is a legal permanent resident of the Un...

On the first days of his migration journey, “Juan” posed for a photo outside a bus terminal to remember the moment. Two years and two thousand miles later, it landed him in the crosshairs of a recently-elected Trump administration determined to wage an all out war on immigrants, and on a plane to Guantánamo Bay. Today, the story of how one Venezuelan migrant ended up inside one of the world's most...

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. Monica Morales-Garcia began to research the origins of the L.B.D. to answer: How had so much changed, yet so much had stayed the same? Listen as Monica walks us through the decline of an industry and the rise of a garment. Follow us on TikTok and Y...

Bella Lugosi's leading role in the creepy 1931 film Dracula made him a horror icon. But there's another, even better version of Dracula that was shot in Spanish using different actors on the same sets. We try to figure out why the Spanish movie ended up so much scarier— and sexier— than the original. Follow us on TikTok and YouTube .  Subscribe to our newsletter by going to the top of our homepage...

In the news this week: We discuss Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele’s unprecedented and controversial offer: to jail U.S. citizens in El Salvador.  Maria Hinojosa sits down with journalists Roman Gressier, editor of El Faro English and host of the podcast “Central America in Minutes,” and Lilia Luciano, CBS News correspondent, to discuss Bukele’s attempts to ally with Trump and the parallels betwe...