90 Millas: Gloria Estefan on Music and Freedom

Description: It is an enriching thing, says Gloria Estefan.

 What does it mean to be latin?

Gloria Estefan:  To me it is an enriching thing.  I think this country is built on immigration, on the fusion of cultures, and the beauty of this country is that you can be a part of this, too, but you don’t have to melt into it.  I think we have a lot of opportunities, we have come a long way; there is still a long way to go, especially in just dispelling myths and fears because that tends to happen a lot, especially every time there is a political situation going on, they always try to blame the last ones in the country, and we keep coming in, so it is always us.  But I think that through the opportunities that we have had here with Tribeca and in my career, really, because I can’t say that we were discriminated against.  What made us shine was the fact that we sounded different in our, in the Latin part of us, so, for us, it spelled success and bringing something new into a market and I hope to never forget that and I hope to carry that on through my kids as well.