Bloomberg Línea — US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden hosted an event at the White House on Thursday that included a screening of the movie ‘Flamin’ Hot’ that tells the life story of Richard Montañez, a Mexican-American and a former Frito-Lay janitor, and his career as a marketing executive.
Although Montañez claims to have invented the famous spicy Cheetos chips, a recent investigation by the Los Angeles Times suggests that this is probably not true. However, this did not stop the Bidens and the film’s director, Eva Longoria, from celebrating the screening along with approximately 600 guests.
Biden mentioned the event in a tweet on Friday, referring to the film as telling “a story about the power of opportunity, a cornerstone of our democracy and exactly what the Hispanic American community embodies”.
“Richard helped change the way businesses think about Latino customers, he helped establish that this community and the economic power it possesses deserve to be taken seriously,” Biden during the screening event.
“But this film is not just about Richard. It’s about all those who have been overlooked and under-appreciated, but who achieved a dream anyway. It’s about sacrifice, love and partnership (...) And it’s about the entire community that came together to make this film possible. Of course, that effort has been led by the incomparable Eva Longoria.”
As Biden noted, Longoria, who is an actress, producer, director, entrepreneur and nonprofit founder, has worked to tell the stories of her community, and support women, especially Latinas.
“We show that when we tell our stories, we tell great American stories, because the American story is the Latino story. The Latino story is the American story. Now we can take this story to the White House under an administration that believes in our community and shares our values,” Longoria said.
This screening is part of a series of similar events organized by Biden to celebrate diverse communities, and precisely in that framework Biden highlighted the history of the Hispanic community and its contribution to the country.
Watch the trailer of ‘Flamin’ Hot’ here:
In the same vein, Biden recently hosted a screening of the film ‘American Born Chinese’, which tells the story of a Vietnamese-born actor who found refuge in Hong Kong before pursuing his dreams in the United States.
Biden has also highlighted the importance of African-American history by screening the film ‘Till’, based on the life of Emmett Till and his impact on the civil rights movement.
Eva Longoria posted photos from the filming of ‘Flamin’ Hot’ on her Instagram.
Film screenings by US politicians is not new, with Henry Kissinger having used the White House theater to host foreign diplomats.
This broader approach is an attempt to attract Hispanic voters and underscore the importance of the Latino community in the United States.
Melissa Morales, president of Somos Votantes, an organization that promotes Latino voter participation, praised the screening as an amazing experience that will resonate with Latino viewers.