Hispanic Haven…in Mesquite?
Last night, I went to the Hispanic Forum of Mesquite’s one year anniversary celebration at the Westlake House. Now, in full disclosure, I was invited by Rachel Lopez, president of the Forum who is also my sister-in-law. She was neither interviewed nor quoted for this entry. It was quite a turnout with Mayor Mike Anderson, City Manager Ted Barron, Chief Gary Westphal and several city council members in attendance. And with good reason. The Hispanic Forum in one year has doubled its membership and has successfully worked with city agencies to, as stated in their flyer, ‘provide an open line of communication and trust from the Hispanic community toward all forms of public service within the City of Mesquite’.
According to the 2000 Census, Hispanics made up roughly 16% of the population of Mesquitewhile African Americans tallied at 13%. Not really the hick town it has the reputation of being. With language barriers and questionable immigration status though, Chief Westphal and Sergeant Mike Bradshaw (you know these guys) discovered a reluctant Hispanic community coming to them for help. There have been instances of domestic violence and hit and run accidents in which Hispanic victims kept it to themselves or simply moved out of Mesquite for fear of dealing with the authorities.
“I know Hispanic families are really close knit and very protective through bad or good. That’s fine up to a point until some kid or some wife is suppressed into not being able to come forward to us to help them. We had to do something about that and so here we are,” Westphal said.
Westphal added that the idea got off to a slow start, which is surprising considering the clout this guy has. And you wouldn’t guess it with the crowd in the room. However, bigger events either led to the creation of the Forum or validated it.
According to Bradshaw, Hurricane Rita brought a huge Hispanic response to Mesquite they weren’t prepared for. They needed help with translations in order to provide food and medical services and lucked out with community volunteers coming to their aid.
And then the immigration reform exploded. The Forum came in handy by talking to area high schools about the pending walkouts. The Forum explained the reform legislation and educated students on the proper way of handling such issues by going through the channels of the political hierarchy. Bradshaw said there were no serious issues afterward with any of the students regarding the walkouts.
The Forum is serious about making an impact. They just formed a relationship with the Mesquite Fire Department to create awareness with their Smoke Detector campaign. Plus, they are fostering a relationship with the Mesquite Independent School District to create an educational initiative to the estimated 12,000 Hispanic students in the district as well as begin fundraising to provide college scholarships.
Looks like Mesquite ain’t just about the Rodeo anymore.
