Rare Beauty Didn’t Wait for Hispanic Heritage Month to Celebrate Latinidad — & That Matters

Selena Gomez recently launched a new Rare Beauty campaign, “Every Story Belongs,” on May 11, which runs through the end of the month and celebrates the “full spectrum” of Latina identity. The campaign emphasizes that being Latina doesn’t mean having a specific skin tone, look, or even a story. In an intentional effort to move away from stereotypes, she brought together 48 Latinas from across Latin America to represent every shade of her new True to Myself Natural Matte Longwear Foundation. She also featured iconic Latinas like Desi Perkins, Pili Montilla, and Monica Veloz.

“There isn’t one way to be Latina,” Gomez is quoted as saying in a press release. ​

Not only does the campaign do a great job of emphasizing that Latina representation goes far beyond skin tone, hair texture, and even race, but it’s also proof that brands don’t need to wait until Latine Heritage Month to launch campaigns celebrating the diversity within Latinidad. For years, brands have primarily acknowledged Latines and our contributions during Latine Heritage Month—rolling out campaigns from September 15 to October 15, only to move on once the month is over. But by launching a campaign that celebrates Latinidad outside of that window, Gomez is communicating something bigger: Latine identity isn’t just a trend or a calendar moment—it’s part of everyday culture.

What also makes this campaign especially meaningful is that Gomez herself has long been vocal about her complicated relationship with Latinidad and never feeling fully accepted as a Latina who is half Mexican and didn’t grow up speaking Spanish. In recent years, she has openly discussed reconnecting more deeply with her roots as an adult, sparking relatable conversations among Latines who don’t feel they fit the narrow expectations of Latinidad. That nuance matters because, for years, we’ve watched Latine identity get flattened into the same old stereotypes in beauty campaigns, often favoring a singular look—olive skin, dark, straight hair, and big, dark eyes.

Seeing a Mexican-American woman who fits that description—and who has also been open about the ways she hasn’t always felt fully accepted by the community, using her beauty brand and platform to celebrate the diversity within our communities—really does signal an evolution in the beauty industry. There’s something especially powerful about seeing a Latina-founded brand create space for a wide spectrum of Latine identities, particularly at a time when conversations around immigration and belonging are politically challenged.

It’s also proof that sometimes we can’t wait for larger corporations to recognize us. Oftentimes, it takes people within our own communities—people with platforms like Selena Gomez’s—to celebrate and center our stories year-round, not just during one month of the year.

Learn more on Rare Beauty’s True to Myself Natural Matte Longwear Foundation here.