Want to Reconnect with your Hispanic Roots? Hire a 'Hispanic Studies Professor'

One of my favorite retro-acculturated Latinas, Jessica Alba, is determined to honor her Mexican heritage at all costs. And that is why she hired a "Hispanic Studies Professor" to teach her -and her daughter, Honor- some Spanish.

Alba told Siempre Mujer (hopefully in Spanish) that she wants to help her daughter avoid the criticism she endured when she was younger and her non-fluency in Spanish made headlines. "God knows that I wish I was raised bilingual," Alba says. "But it wasn't to be."

If you asked me, I think a good first step to have your child avoid criticism is to not name her Honor, but hey, that's me! On second thoughts, she might be onto something by picking a truly bilingual name for her first born: one that sounds awful in both English and Spanish.

As for the Hispanic specialist, I guess a Spanish-language teacher would suffice, but heck, if you are Jessica Alba you might as well go the extra kilómetro and make things right.