FORT CARSON Colo.-- “One thing is that growing up, I did deal with a lot of racism, and it bothered me a lot to where I didn’t want to be Hispanic because of that.” said U.S. Army Sgt. Joaquin Acosta a wheeled vehicle mechanic with Headquarters Support Company, Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 4th Infantry Division. Acosta is from El Paso, Texas with family from Juarez, Mexico.
Growing up Acosta faced hardships with his identity, but through it all, he was able to find himself exploring and embracing more of his roots with his wife. Acosta aims to continue to share his culture with those around him.
In the beginning, Acosta held himself to a different standard and strived to become better each day.
“I grew up with kids that only had one dream, like basketball and all this other stuff and a lot of people put me down because you know I am Hispanic, they would say he can’t do this,” said Acosta. “So, it pushes me more every single day to be better, and I’m going to go ahead and do what I have to do.”
In spite of not growing up with many Mexican traditions, Acosta and his wife continue to learn more about the culture and its many traditions that have been passed down.
“I met my wife four years ago and at the time I knew only minimal traditions, but when I met her, she introduced me to all kinds of traditions. Seems like we need to get more into our culture,” said Acosta. “I never really saw a Quinceanera before, until recently she took me to one.”
Moving forward, he has found a lot of appreciation in being a Hispanic American and discovered the meaning of it in his life.
“It makes me feel good because it makes me think of the family members that wanted to come to America, but never got to come,” said Acosta. “I wear my name proudly, because a lot of my family back home are really proud of me for the things I've completed.”
As well as embracing that side of him, Acosta tries to share with others around him.
“We're always excited to celebrate anything. It can be a birthday party, it can be a baby shower, we're always excited for something and that's what just drives us as a celebration,” said Acosta. “So, I try to explain to them and show them what it's about.”
Furthermore, Acosta holds himself to a standard because he represents more than one thing.
“Every time I put on this uniform and out of this uniform, I am very proud of everything I am, especially being Hispanic. So, with that, I try to always be professional, because I'm always getting looked at, everyone's always looking at you,” said Acosta. “That way, when someone looks at me, they see, I'm a Soldier, I'm a man, a person, and again, a Hispanic American. I want everyone to see me in all kinds of ways. ¨
In addition, those who work around him appreciate his character and what he brings to the table.
“He motivates people around him, and he does this by just hard charging. Making sure everyone's doing the right thing. Taking charge. He is not being a boss but being a leader and actually doing what he's telling them to do and doing it with them,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Augustine Perez, assigned to the HSC, HHBN, 4th Inf. Div. “Not like hey, go do this but hey, let's go do this. That's the kind of person he is. He's a leader.”
Acosta is a Hispanic American Soldier who continues to embrace his culture, his name and wears the uniform proudly.
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