A Few Unforgettable Latino Moments of 2006

One of the biggest moments in the Hispanic community this year would have to be when the Alma awards came back on television. The awards, originally created by the national council of la Raza in 1995 to promote positive images of Hispanics in films and music, have not been broadcast since 2002. But thanks to Eva Longoria, who worked as host and producer and as many of us know her as Gabrielle Solis on Desperate Housewives, the event was picked up by the ABC network for a full 90 minute prime time special. Longoria's costars also made an appearance. The event manage to pull in 4 million viewers, more than double back in the 2002 show. I guess all it took was a little star power to get things going.

Another great moment this year would have to be beautiful ratings for "Ugly Betty". This is a series about a young Latina, played by America Ferrera, who works as an editor for playboy magazine. The show is based on Columbia's telenovela "Betty la fea. Ugly Betty premiered as the most watched new show of the fall season and highest ratings in its timeslot that ABC has had in 11 years. Awesome!

One of the most wins for Miss Universe wins goes to Puerto Rico and this years winner is Ms. Zuleyka Rivera. The 18 year old beauty is a native from Puerto Rico and her chosen cause is AIDS awareness, here in the U.S she works with the Global Health council, Gay men's health crisis , AmFar and many more. Commission reports that infection rates are five times higher than that of white women and the numbers are still rising. She is such a positive role model for the millions of young girls that will look up to her. Rivera has vocally stated her cause and during a trip to India she promoted AIDS awareness.

There are also some not so good moments, this past October President Bush has signed a law "The Secure Fence Act", which is a border of fences that span more than 700 miles along the U.S.-Mexico border. Mexican president, Vicente Fox has expressed how he feels about this new law. The fence will cost about $2 billion to build or $3 million per mile.

These are just a few highlights of Hispanic moments this year and there were much more and many to come, whether it's Miss Universe or America Ferrera, Latinos are slowly but surely making a huge breakthrough in today's media.