El ratón de Hialeah

Mariah Baylor

On Monday, I watched the ESPN show “Dan Le Batard Is Highly Questionable” with my Sports Journalism Institute classmates. Dan hosts the show with his father Gonzalo, who goes by “Papi” on the show. We were told that after the show, Dan was going to call the class and we would have an opportunity to ask a few questions. Naturally I typed his name into Google for some background.
I was intrigued by the fact that Dan and Papi are Cuban-Americans. Dan grew up in Miami after his mother and father moved to the United States from Cuba.
I learned that Dan and his father do the TV show in what Papi calls the armpit of Miami. That would be Hialeah, with a population comprised of mostly Hispanics and an economy that is struggling. Papi loves the city and began to call himself "el ratón de Hialeah" (the rat of Hialeah).
I was immediately interested to learn this, as I attended a Spanish immersion school from kindergarten through eighth grade. Many of my friends are first- or second-generation Americans and have roots in Hispanic countries. I respect Dan and Papi and understand how his culture has helped him succeed.