A more diverse school, a more diverse county

Coahulla students, teachers unite around Hispanic heritage

By Christopher Smith christophersmith@daltoncitizen.com

When Ivette Colón and her mother went to an Arizona diner in the summer of 2006, the year she immigrated from Puerto Rico, she said she experienced the kind of segregation she said she thought was left behind in the 1960s.

“I was told to wait for service,” she said. “So I did.”

But they were never served, she said. Eventually, Colón asked the staff and then the owner what was taking so long. They were told they wouldn’t be served because of Colón’s race.

Since coming to Dalton, and teaching at Coahulla Creek High School, Colón says she’s seen a community of diversity and acceptance. Students and staff are celebrating diversity, specifically the Latino population, during National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15.

Already the event has created “a lot of respect” between Hispanics and non-Hispanics alike, several students said.

Avery Hamilton, a Coahulla Creek student and vice president of the Spanish club who is currently learning the language, said he’s trying “to learn as much as I can about another culture.”

“Hispanic Heritage Month — that’s just showing people that there are other cultures out there,” he said, “and that there are large groups of people out there we can learn from.”

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