The construction of these Latino and African- American identities is detailed in the following historical overview of fashions, styles, and musical genres that have impacted and shaped all of American culture. While some of these looks may be seen as exclusively “Latin” or “black,” many have been adopted and assimilated into Western fashion. Highlighting major fashion movements associated with music allows for a critique of some of the fashion styles of African-American and Latino identities from the 1940s to today. These musical social movements allowed both blacks and Latinos to construct visual and social identities that were unique to their ethnic groups. Ironically, there is little written about these two groups as innovators of male fashion style responsible for such looks as zoot suits, mambo, rhythm and blues (R&B), salsa, Motown, Latino pop, and reggaetón. Their styles, fashions, and popular music have impacted American culture during both the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
African-American and Latino men adorn and wear clothing as an integral part of personal identity.