Representation Matters: 15 Latinxs I Saw on TV While Growing Up

I didn’t care much for having Barbie dolls when I was little. I had her Latinx friend Teresa (I still have to find out who bought this doll for me and thank them). Maybe it’s because Teresa looked more like me, with dark hair and dark eyes. The point is that it’s imperative that little girls and boys see people who look like them, everywhere — and this includes television and film. On the small screen, among the sea of human Barbies, with blonde hair, blue eyes, no accents, and European names, I felt empowered and seen to witness the presence of a doll such as Teresa. Here are those Latinx actors and actresses whom I saw on television, while growing up in the eighties and nineties. Because representation matters.

13Michael DeLorenzo and Luna Lauren Velez on New York Undercover

Delorenzo Velez IG delofan360 BeLatina
Photo Credit IG @delofan360

To this day, Latinxs are often portrayed on television as criminals. So when they’re on the other side of the law on the small screen, you take notice. Especially if they’re attractive, cool, and young POC. Enter Puerto Ricans Michael DeLorenzo and Luna Lauren Velez (and Malik Yoba!), who starred on New York Undercover in the nineties.