‘Love Island USA’ makes history with first Latino winning couple

On Sunday, July 13, during the finale of the reality show “Love Island USA”, Amaya Espinal and Bryan Arenales were crowned the winners of season seven, making history as the first Latino couple to ever win the competition.

Espinal quickly became a fan favorite this season, thanks to her genuine personality. The show's host, Ariana Madix, gave her the nickname “Amaya Papaya,” which was embraced by her social media fans throughout her experience. Although she had many rocky relationships with the man in the villa, she was able to get her happily ever after on the show.

Early in the season, Espinal was involved with Allen Greene “Ace”, Austin Shepard and Zac Mirabelli. Each of them criticized her for being overly sensitive, wearing her heart on her sleeve and using too many terms of endearment.

Throughout the show Espinal, who is Dominican, is misunderstood by her personality and love language but ultimately ends up winning America's heart with her words of wisdom that have since gone viral. “Many people could view this as a weakness, but to me personally, after everything I've been through in my life, I view it as a strength,” said Amaya Papya as she claps back at her exes. “God forbid I'm a sensitive gangster.”

In Episode 26, Arenales, who is Puerto Rican and Guatemalan, defends Espinal after her exes criticize her for simply being herself. He stands up for her, explaining to the islanders that, coming from a Hispanic household, using terms like “babe,” “mi amor” and “mi vida” is just their natural way of speaking. 

This moment marked a major turning point in Amaya Papayas' love life. She later thanks Arenales for defending her and making her feel truly understood, sparking a deeper connection between them and ultimately leading them to explore a potential relationship in the villa.

Espinal and Arenales weren’t the only Latinos on the show. Yulissa Escobar had a short time on the reality TV show. She was removed from the villa in the second episode after footage of her saying the N-word resurfaced online.

She responded to the backlash in an Instagram post, writing, “In those clips, I used a word I never should’ve used, a racial slur. I used it ignorantly, not fully understanding the weight, history or pain behind it. I wasn’t trying to be offensive or harmful, but I recognize now that intention doesn’t excuse impact. And the impact of that word is real. It’s tied to generations of trauma, and it is not mine to use.”

Cierra Ortega, a content creator from Arizona, joined “Love Island USA” as a bombshell at the beginning of the season and was involved with another islander when the producers sent her home after viewers called out some of her old social media posts, where she used an anti-Asian slur.

She addressed the controversy in a video, saying: “While I was in the villa, there were some posts that resurfaced from my past where I was very naively using an incredibly offensive and derogatory term. I want to first start by addressing not just anyone that I have hurt or deeply offended, but most importantly, the entire Asian community. I am deeply, truly, honestly, so sorry. I had no idea that the word held as much pain, as much harm, and came with the history that it did, or I never would have used it.”

Following the racist controversies by those two Latinas in the reality TV show, Espinal and Arenales' win earned praise from fans on social media for its positive media representation of the Latino community especially during these trying times.

Additionally, in the season finale, every couple is expected to give a speech to their significant other or with the person that they were coupled with. Fans went crazy when Arenales quoted a song from Bad Bunny to end his speech to Espinal.

He ended his loving words with a Spanish phrase: “Mi diabla, mi ángel, mi loquita,” which translates to, “My devil, my angel, my crazy girl,” proving once more that he will always understand her culturally, no matter what.

Although Espinal and Arenales were voted the winners of the show, the final twist involves an envelope that determines who will receive the $100,000 prize. Only one of them can claim the full amount before deciding whether to keep it or share it. In the end, Arenales is the one who received the envelope containing the prize money.

He immediately said he’d split the cash with Amaya Papaya, noting that it wasn’t “even a question” for him to do so. “Of course I’m splitting this money with Amaya,” Arenales said.

“And for people to see how powerful our connection is … boy, was this a ride here on “Love Island,’” Amaya said. “But man, I would do this ride all over again if it led me to him.” They both celebrated their win at the end of the show by running around the villa and jumping in the pool with the rest of the Islanders.

Latino Love Island USA fans called this a win for the Latino community.