Oklahoma

NORMAN, Okla. (NAMB)—Why did communist guerillas in El Salvador put Daniel Caceres so high on their murder “hit list” in 1980?

Was it because his brother was a top officer in El Salvador’s army battling the guerillas? Was it because Daniel had been a successful businessman, or because he was an evangelical Christian leader in the civil war-torn nation?

Now, 27 years later, Caceres (pronounced “Ka-se-res”) says he doesn’t care or want to know why he was targeted.”*

*From: http://www.floridabaptistwitness.com
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A new Oklahoma immigration law, which is one of the strictest in the nation, could have far-reaching effects on Kansas.

About 14 percent of Oklahoma’s legal and illegal immigrants have been moving to neighboring states or Mexico as a result of the bill, said Linda Allegro, a political science professor at the University of Tulsa.

With the outflow of migrants, some are concerned Kansas will become a “sanctuary state,” said Brent Metz, Kansas University assistant professor of anthropology”*

*From: http://www2.ljworld.com
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The splintered trees, downed branches and piles of wood still littering nearly every neighborhood of this sprawling city two months after a devastating ice storm stand as a testament to something more than the ferocity of nature.

The debris is also a sign of the effectiveness ofOklahoma’s new law intended to drive illegal immigrants out of the state — the strictest such statute in the nation.

The branches are still here, many of the law’s critics say, because the undocumented workers who would have cleaned them up are not.”*

*From: http://www.chicagotribune.com
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uring a visit to Oklahoma, the former president of Mexico has urged lawmakers to develop sensible immigration reform.
Vicente Fox, who served as Mexico’s president from 2000 to 2006, spoke in Oklahoma City and Tulsa on Tuesday at events hosted by Oklahoma State University’s Spears School of Business.”*

*From: http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/223873.phpDELETEME!
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Get an education and give something back. That was the message given to more than 200 Hispanic high school students who attended the fourth annual Latino Youth Leadership Conference at Oklahoma City University.

Featured speakers Jesse Iniguez and Rolando Santoyo, co-founders of the Hispanic Web site and T-shirt line no-manches.com, told the students how they started their business. The Chicago natives, both in their mid-20s, said a solid college education was the key.”*

*From: http://newsok.com
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A task force of the Oklahoma Conference United Methodist Church says Oklahoma’s immigration reform law is unjust and should be reconsidered.”*

*From: http://www.kten.com
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“Be very, very cautious before going into this minefield,” Mike Seney, an Oklahoma Chamber of Commerce official, told the Lawrence Journal-World. “There is a reason for a federal pre-emption on this.”

Kansas lawmakers should heed the warnings.

Oklahoma’s crackdown on illegal immigrants — billed as the toughest in the nation — sounded good to many people when it was passed last year. The law makes it a felony to harbor, transport or hire an unauthorized immigrant.”*

*From: http://www.kansas.com
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The sponsor of the law cracking down on illegal immigrants says he has no intention of giving in to pressure from Hispanic leaders, church officials and the business community.

Republican State Representative Randy Terrill says House leaders plan to fight any effort to repeal or weaken the law and he says he’ll offer even tougher restrictions during the upcoming session beginning February 4th.”*

*From: http://www.kten.com
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ispanic construction workers who are illegal immigrants have been leaving their jobs and the state since July because of fear rooted in House Bill 1804, says Dave Kollman, president of Flintco Cos. Inc., a major Tulsa contractor.

Now, even legal Hispanics are vanishing due to the effects of the Oklahoma law that cracked down on illegal immigration, he said.

“There’s a scare component running through the Hispanic community,” Kollman said. “Even if they’re legal, they’re leaving because they’re family-oriented, and people they know are leaving.” “*

*From: http://www.tulsaworld.com
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The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., expressed deep concern about the impact of new state laws which appear to target illegal immigrants, but also have severe negative consequences for the entire Latino community. Of particular concern is a law in Oklahoma which was implemented in late 2007, the Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2007. On January 24, in Oklahoma City, representatives from NCLR and its Affiliates will join Oklahoma state officials, parents, and other community leaders at a town hall to discuss the impact of the law and policy alternatives that address the real needs of all Oklahoma residents.

“We are a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants; however, laws like the one enacted in Oklahoma do more harm than good. They encourage treating all Hispanic people in the state as suspects and wreak havoc on our civil rights,” said Janet Murguía, President and CEO of NCLR.

The new Oklahoma law appears to be part of a trend at the state level. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, more than 1,500 bills related to immigration were introduced in 2007 and more than 200 became law.

“While the failure of Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform left a vacuum that states understandably feel obligated to address, the nation’s immigration problems will not be solved with a patchwork of state-level policies,” added Murguía.

“Too many states have passed laws that are costly, are practically impossible to enforce, and create a hostile atmosphere for all Hispanics by treating them as if they are in violation of the law by virtue of their ethnicity,” continued Murguía.

“While all Americans are understandably frustrated at the federal government’s failure to solve this nation’s immigration problem, the problem is exacerbated by laws that push immigrants further underground and create a climate of fear and exploitation,” Murguía concluded.”*

*From: http://www.nclr.org
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It’s been the trend across the country for state legislators to stand behind their respective chamber podiums, declare they’re doing the will of the people and proceed to create and pass laws aimed at making life so uncomfortable for undocumented immigrants that they will feel they have no other option but to leave the state.”*

*From: http://www.latinalista.net
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The Hispanic population has increased throughout the public school system, according to findings released by the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

Last week, the State Department of Education issued a press release that indicated a record number of 641,721 students were enrolled in Oklahoma public schools on Oct. 1. Hispanic children accounted for 10 percent of the student population. The figure jumped from 4.5 percent, recorded in October 1997.”*

*From: http://www.normantranscript.com
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Everyone has something to say (don’t you?): Read more quotes

Source of quote: http://www.usatoday.com
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So did you know this? If you didn’t, perhaps you could send it to someone you know to help spread the knowledge and please tell them about HispanicTips.

View more “Did You Know?” facts in our “Did You Know?” section

From: http://www.usatoday.com
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Autumn had arrived in eastern Oklahoma, and workers at the sprawling Greenleaf Nursery were prepping for deadly frosts. They needed to ship plants, erect greenhouses and bunch trees together to protect them against the cold.

But in late October, about 40 employees disappeared from the 600-acre nursery about an hour’s drive from Tulsa. “Some went to Texas, some went to Arkansas,” nursery President Randy Davis says. “They just left.”

Why did the workers, all immigrants, flee? “Those states don’t have 1804,” Davis says.”*

*From: http://www.usatoday.com
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Attorneys for a Tulsa County man filed a lawsuit today seeking to declare a new anti-illegal immigration law unconstitutional.

Plaintiff Michael C. Thomas seeks to prevent public funds from being spent by the state and Tulsa County to enforce what the lawsuit calls an unconstitutional statute.”*

*From: http://www.kten.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

An increase in Hispanic students helped fuel record enrollment in Oklahoma public schools.

A state Education Department report today shows there are 641,721 students as of October 1st. The report shows Oklahoma’s 2007-2008 public school population is 10% Hispanic, compared to 4.5% 10 years ago.”*

*From: http://www.kten.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Oklahoma’s local law against illegal immigration is among the toughest in the nation. The law went into effect Nov. 1, and advocates for undocumented workers and activists for tougher immigration measures both say that since then, thousands of immigrants have left Oklahoma.Among other things, the new law makes it a felony to harbor, transport or aid an illegal immigrant. Hispanic leaders say the law is causing widespread fear in the Hispanic community. Builders say they can’t get enough workers and are threatening a lawsuit to try to block the law.”*

*From: http://www.npr.org
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Some businesses in southern Oklahoma City with a connection to the Hispanic community have seen their profits drop since a sweeping law against illegal immigration took effect.

Grider Food Stores, which is a major distributor of Hispanic foods, had a reported sales decline of more than $500,000 during the last three months. Business at Carniceria El Torito, a meat purveyor, has been off about 30 percent since House Bill 1804 took effect Nov. 1. “*

*From: http://www.tulsaworld.com
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The latest court ruling against a challenge to Oklahoma’s tough new immigration law will be appealed, says the leader of a national Hispanic group behind the lawsuit.

On Friday, a Tulsa federal judge refused to reconsider an earlier ruling dismissing a lawsuit against House Bill 1804.”*

*From: http://www.journalrecord.com
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A story reported by Hispano de Tulsa of Tulsa, Oklahoma, one of the hardest areas hit by HB 1804 and suffering a toll on the local Latino community, is about a 16-year-old boy who was stopped by police at a makeshift checkpoint that our sources tell us are now randomly being set up around the state to catch undocumented immigrants driving without licenses or insurance.

This boy was caught at one of these checkpoints and arrested. A friend who was with him was told by the officer that the boy would be released if someone came and paid his $500 fine. The friend was released and immediately called the boy’s family.”*

I actually got pulled over by an Oklahoma State Trooper last week. I didn’t get a ticket (something to do with my car’s tags) so I had to ask him about immigration in Oklahoma and he said that the State Troopers don’t have the budget or manpower to deal with undocumented that they stop. Other than that he didn’t even seem aware of the new law. He was just a nice guy doing his job.

Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson said he doubts the state’s controversial new immigration law will be overturned, but he added the measure has caused state government some problems.

“If there are any positive aspects of 1804, we are not going to see them in the short term — that’s if we ever see them. We are seeing many negative impacts immediately,” Edmondson told the Governor’s Advisory Council on Latin American and Hispanic Affairs on Monday.

“It was my obligation to defend this. I only have to argue the legality of it. I’m very grateful I do not have to argue the morality of it.”"*

Messengers to the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma passed a resolution emphasizing non-discriminating ministry to illegal immigrants and adopted a record budget of $24.6 million.

“Finishing the Task” was the theme of the convention, which brought almost 900 messengers to First Baptist Church of Moore.”*

Retailers and employers whose success depends on Latino business and workers have felt the pinch since Oklahoma’s anti-illegal immigrant law went into effect on Nov. 1. Some undocumented immigrants have left the state and others are reluctant to venture outside of their homes.

“There is a definite shortage of workers,” said Mike Seney, senior vice president of operations for The State Chamber, a business and industry group that represents 1,500 employers statewide.

With Oklahoma’s unemployment rate at just 4.2 percent of the labor force _ lower than the national rate of 4.7 percent _ contractors and businesses need workers to fill their labor pools, Seney said”*

And Rodriguez is not alone. The Oklahoma City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce estimates that more than 300,000 Hispanics now live in state — with a large portion in Oklahoma City — and the number is growing rapidly. Many of them are sports fans who find themselves in the same situation as Rodriguez. While soccer is still the traditional sport to play and follow, OU football has steadily become a close second, especially in younger generations. And people are starting to take notice.

Saturday, for the second time ever, Tyler Media’s KTUZ-FM “La Zeta” 106.7 will broadcast the OU-Oklahoma State football game in Spanish. The radio station’s decision to carry Bedlam comes after its first foray into Sooner football — OU’s 51-13 victory over Miami on September 8 — received overwhelmingly positive responses from the community.”*