Did You Find Anything Wrong With Her Speech? First Lady Jill Biden slammed as people accuse her of comparing Latino people to ‘unique tacos’
First Lady Jill Biden is not everyone’s favorite right about now. She’s taking some heat over the recent comments she made during a speech on Monday.
Mrs. Biden was in the middle of praising civil rights icon Raul Yzaguirre during the annual conference of UnidosUS when she said made the now-controversial remarks. Yzaguirre led the advocacy organization, which used to be known as the National Council of La Raza, for three decades. Jill Biden said, “Raul helped build this organization with the understanding that the diversity of this community — as distinct as the bodegas of the Bronx, as beautiful as the blossoms of Miami, and as unique as the breakfast tacos here in San Antonio — is your strength,” Biden said.
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Although the comments prompted a small cheer from the crowd, theNational Association of Hispanic Journalists didn’t seem to like the remarks, as they responded by saying, “We are not tacos.” “Using breakfast tacos to try to demonstrate the uniqueness of Latinos in San Antonio demonstrates a lack of cultural knowledge and sensitivity to the diversity of Latinos in the region,” the association wrote.
“NAHJ encourages Dr. Biden and her speech writing team to take the time in the future to better understand the complexities of our people and communities. We are not tacos.
Our heritage as Latinos is shaped by a variety of diasporas, cultures, and food traditions, and should not be reduced to a stereotype.”
To make matters worse, she also badly mispronounced “bodegas,” the small corner stores in urban areas typically specializing in Hispanic groceries.
What Has Jill Biden Said Following The Backlash
While Jill Biden hasn’t personally spoken out after the event, Biden’s press secretary, Michael LaRosa, tweeted on Tuesday morning: “The First Lady apologizes that her words conveyed anything but pure admiration and love for the Latino community.”
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Meanwhile, just last week, President Joe Biden awarded the former longtime leader of UnidosUS, Raul Yzaguirre, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest honor for a civilian. He also served as the ambassador to the Dominican Republic under President Barack Obama.
Yzaguirre was among 17 people awarded the medal Thursday by President Joe Biden. Among the honorees are former Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz.; Olympic gymnast Simone Biles; U.S. soccer player Megan Rapinoe; the actor Denzel Washington; and posthumously, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple.
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