As part of my heritage and upbringing I believe that every crisis we encounter brings us new opportunities. Sometimes one has to dig a little deeper to find the opportunities, but eventually, you find them.

The past few years have been filled with adversity for the Latino community in the United States and in our State. The surge of anti-immigrant sentiment targeting mostly Latinos has affected not only undocumented immigrants, but all Latinos. The FBI reports that hate crimes against Latinos have increased dramatically. Families have been broken apart with US citizen Latinos being separated from their loved ones. Expressions of racism previously considered politically incorrect, have suddenly gained acceptance. Nevertheless, even the law that was portrayed as the most stringent anti-immigrant legislation in the country has had its silver lining.

HB1804 was approved in May of 2007. Less than a month later the exodus of Latinos fleeing the state, especially out of Tulsa, created an immediate economic impact. Many companies lost a large portion of their workforce and were unable to find replacements. Businesses reported losses due to a decreased consumer market. Banks, who had labored to educate Latinos about the benefit of using banking services, were reporting the closing of accounts daily. State revenues had decreased. The business sector in the State that had been rather indifferent to the efforts to combat the passage of the law suddenly became engaged in opposing HB1804, and the Chambers of Commerce became the leading force in legal actions against the law.

The silver lining that HB1804 brought with it is the undeniable demonstration of the positive impact the Latino community has had on the economy of the State of Oklahoma. Yes, every crisis brings an opportunity and silver linings can be found in the least expected places.

The LCDA has been, and will continue to be, a voice for justice and fairness for our

community, to promote education, access to health care, economic self sufficiency and to provide needed services to those in need.

Patricia B. Fennell

President/CEO