Taco trucks on every corner facts for kids
The phrase "taco trucks on every corner" became famous during the 2016 United States presidential election. It was first used by Marco Gutierrez, who helped start a group called Latinos for Trump, on September 1, 2016. His comments quickly got a lot of attention.
During an interview, Gutierrez, who has Mexican heritage, said that his culture was "very dominant" and "causing problems." He warned, "If you don't do something about it, you're going to have taco trucks on every corner." People reacted to his words with both jokes and criticism. Many made fun of the statement on social media, and #TacosOnEveryCorner became a top trending topic on Twitter. Others worried that his words were a hidden way to express racist ideas about immigration. Later, taco trucks were even used as places to register voters in Houston, Texas. A national campaign called Guac the Vote also started. National Public Radio (NPR) said that taco trucks had become both a political symbol and a popular internet meme.
Contents
Where Did the Phrase Come From?
The phrase "taco trucks on every corner" was first spoken by Marco Gutierrez. He was a co-founder of the group Latinos for Trump. He said it during an interview with Joy Reid on MSNBC on September 1, 2016.
Gutierrez used the phrase to warn about the "dominance" of Mexican culture. He wanted to show why he believed immigration should be controlled more strictly. In another interview, he explained, "If you don't regulate the immigration... we are going to do whatever we want. We are going to take over." He felt that Mexican culture was taking over American culture, and both cultures were reacting to this.
How Did People React?
People online reacted very quickly after the interview. The Associated Press called the online response a "social media onslaught." By September 3, 2016, #TacoTrucksOnEveryCorner was the most popular hashtag on Twitter.
- Voter Registration: A special event using taco trucks to register voters in Houston led to a big increase in voter sign-ups. The Houston Chronicle newspaper reported that this effort caused the county clerk to encourage people to vote early. By the time registration closed, Harris County's voter list had grown by over 6% since 2014. This was the biggest increase in 16 years.
- Guac the Vote Campaign: The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce started a campaign called Guac the Vote. They used taco trucks to help people register to vote and to be present at voting places on election day. The name of the campaign refers to guacamole.
- Satirical Taco Truck Party: Gustavo Arellano and others created a funny political group called the Taco Truck Party. LA Weekly quoted Arellano saying that the election had become simple: "do you want tacos or no tacos."
- Taco Truck Owners' Views: Some taco truck owners used the moment to speak out. Nancy Paz, who owns Tacos El Caballo in Detroit, parked her truck across from a Trump rally. Osiris Hoil, who owns District Taco in the Washington area, welcomed the idea of taco trucks everywhere. He simply said, "Why not?" Hoil started his business as a food truck before opening several restaurants.
What Did Political Figures Say?
- Hillary Clinton's View: On September 8, 2016, during a call with university students, Hillary Clinton said, "And in case you're wondering, I'd love it if there were taco trucks on every corner!" She repeated this on September 15, 2016, saying, "I personally think a taco truck on every corner sounds absolutely delicious."
- Former Mexican President's Comment: On September 9, 2016, former president of Mexico Vicente Fox visited a taco truck in Los Angeles. He was being interviewed for a radio show and stated, "Los tacos will make America great — not the other guy."
- Trump Campaign's Response: On September 13, 2016, a spokesperson for the Donald Trump campaign, Jon Cordova, said that Marco Gutierrez was "NOT a surrogate" for the campaign. He added that Gutierrez only shared his own views, not the campaign's official position.
Taco Trucks in Different Places
- Denver, Colorado: The Colorado Democratic Party used a taco truck parked outside Donald Trump's campaign office in Denver to register voters. On September 7, 2016, the truck was damaged.
- Detroit, Michigan: The Hillary Clinton campaign announced a "Voter Registration on Every Corner- Southwest Taco Trucks Edition" event. This event involved eight taco trucks on September 16, 2016.
- Houston, Texas: A communications company and a group called Mi Familia Vota organized a two-week voter registration drive. They used taco trucks across the city to give out voter registration cards and information in two languages. This drive started on National Voter Registration Day, September 27, 2016.
- Taco trucks were also part of political events in Arizona.
What Did Surveys Show?
Surveys found that many Americans liked the idea of taco trucks.
- YouGov Survey: A survey of 1,898 American adults on September 3, 2016, found that 58% would be happy "if there was a taco truck on your corner." This was reported by the market research company YouGov.
- Public Policy Polling: In a survey of 744 likely voters in Florida from September 4 to 6, 2016, the polling company Public Policy Polling found that "tacos and taco trucks are pretty popular among voters." Tacos had a +36% net favorability, and taco trucks had a +30% net favorability. The survey also noted a "pretty significant party divide" on the topic of taco trucks.
