Significance 

Donald Trump, the GOP’s 2016 nominee, passionately proclaimed his stanch positions on illegal immigrants and immigration throughout the primary debates.  By calling Mexican immigrants “rapists” and criminals, along with proposing the building of a “great wall”, made of precast concrete towering 40 feet or higher, along the southern border with Mexico and deportation of 11 million undocumented immigrants, Trump built political notoriety by making immigration based issues the center piece of his campaign (Alvarez, 2016). In addition to causing significant public uproar, the incendiary statements on illegal immigration Trump made during his GOP presidential campaign announcement prompted media mammoth, Spanish-language TV Network and NBC Universal affiliate Univision to terminate its partnership with the Miss Universe pageant, an organization with rights Trump previously co-owned.  Given the gravity of these racial tensions and resulting political implications, it remains vital to understand how one of the most rapidly growing and influential demographics affected by this issue perceive and respond accordingly.  Unlike other voting demographics, bilingual Spanish speaking Latinos remain unique by virtue of a common language and news media.