Salma Hayek is proud of Mexican roots

Salma Hayek has taught her children to embrace their Mexican heritage.

The 'Savages' actress spoke about how proud she is of the culture after a magazine reported she ''hardly has any memories of what it is like to be Mexican.''

She said in a press release: ''I have never denied my background or my culture. I have taught my child to embrace her Mexican heritage, to love my first language, Spanish, to learn about Mexican history, music, folk art, food, and even the Mexican candy I grew up with.''

She added that she hasn't forgotten her roots and didn't mean to offend the people of her home country.

She continued:''I have always been an active part of my community. I have tried my whole life to represent my Mexican roots with honor and pride. It saddens me when my words are lost in translation and taken out of context to hurt the people of Mexico, whom I love.''

Salma caused controversy this month while speaking to Vogue Deutsch about playing a Mexican drug cartel leader in the new film Savages.

The star is alleged to have said: ''I am proud to have been involved in this film with all these great actors. Honestly, I hardly had any memories of what it is to be Mexican. My life is completely different now.''

Her representative later attempted to clarify that the comments were translated from German incorrectly and added that she was ''not disparaging Mexico in any way''.

© Bang Showbiz