Some people seem to think there are no people of Spanish heritage in the U.S. other than illegal immigrants.
Ignorant of history, I suppose-Columbus may have paved the way for mass exodus from Spain, but Cortez really started it when he brought all those Spanish soldiers here-more of them than not saw a fine deal in staying in New Spain, setting themselves up on some land with a Native American woman, making a living and having a bunch of kids-better than going back to old Spain-where maybe they were a 3d son in a poor family, or-like many of my ancestors-a Basque rebel from the Pyrenees ripe for hanging if caught who joined the army, got on a Mexico bound ship and decamped with haste...
Or that all of them are a mix of African and Indian with only a few Europeans.