Eva Mendes was born in Miami, Florida and raised in Glendale, California.
Both of Eva's parents are Cuban immigrants and she was raised a strict Catholic. Mendes seems to view her religious upbringing as an inner challenge to be overcome. Speaking about the difficulty of filming a sex scene with co-star Joaquin Phoenix, Mendes said:
I did very much want to be a nun when I was younger. I guess there is this little Catholic girl still inside me somewhere because otherwise I would probably have had no problem with that scene. It's something I just have to deal with.[1]
Suffice it to say, Mendes has given up on Catholicism. The current key to her spirituality is an expression of Hinduism: Transcendental Meditation. It's something that keeps her balanced and creative. She said:
…[Transcendental Meditation] helps me deal with life's ups and downs, coming from more of a centered place. Also it helps with creativity.[2]
However, while Mendes seems to benefit from Transcendental Mediation, she hasn't indicated that she believes in the tenets of Hinduism and many practitioners claim religion isn't necessary to be successful.
Political balance
Mendes presents a bit of a political conundrum. She appears to give everyone the benefit of the doubt while simultaneously avoiding any loyalties. She expressed disappointment that she wasn't able to get tickets to Democratic President Barack Obama's inauguration,[3] causing one to infer that she was a supporter and a Democrat.
On the other hand, when Hollywood stars were running Sarah Palin through the ringer, every chance they got, Mendes was encouraging people to give her a fair shot–particularly when it came to Palin's pregnant teenage daughter. She said:
It's never easy when you're dealing with something like teen pregnancy. People need to look beyond that and give her [Sarah] the chance to have her fair say.[4]
I'm not sure how to classify her now, especially since she's been silent on the normal hot-button social issues that tend to pit people against each other–gay marriage, immigration, etc. Let's hear your opinions in the comments.
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