Latino Christians grapple with complicated identity
Allen Hernandez wears his Christian faith and his indigenous Maya roots on his sleeves, literally.
His left arm is tattooed with images of the sacred heart of Jesus, a pair of hands clasped in prayer, and an angel praying over the tombstone of a friend.
His right forearm is emblazoned with a tattoo of a feathered serpent, a Mesoamerican deity worshiped by the Yucatán Maya people.
“I am indigenous. I am Mayan and I am Christian,” said Hernandez, 39, whose parents are from Guatemala. “I don’t know how these fit in the same sentence.”