Thread: Illegal Town USA? Part 3

Illegal Town USA? Part 3 11/16/07



Melissa Correa
CBS 7 News
November 16, 2007

West Texas- El Cenizo, Texas. A rural community along the Texas/Mexico border is gaining national attention.

Their official language is Spanish, and they have a "safe haven" ordinance, which protects illegal immigrants.

Are these city laws unique to El Cenizo or could they make it into West Texas communities?

Our cameras hit the streets to find out what you think.

"I am very disgusted."

Others, thought we were joking.

"Why would they do that?"

But El Cenizo's safe haven ordinance, and the fact that Spanish is the town's official language, is sparking anything but laughter when it comes to the immigration debate.

"What happened in El Cenizo was just that," says Mike Borland. "Residents decided to make official what is already going on in every small town on the border."

Mike Borland is a local immigration lawyer. He says, safe haven ordinances are nothing new.

"It's not uncommon for cities to have ordinances that don't permit employees to disclose or inquire about the immigration status when they're providing public services."

So would West Texans approve such a thing here?

"If you're gonna live in Texas, be sure you're legal."

"They should ask if they are illegal and they should show their citizenship papers."

But should local West Texas governments "encourage" Spanish?

"A city speaking only Spanish in Texas, I don't think that's right."

"Everybody here speaks English, ain't nobody gonna be bi-lingual."

"It would pretty much be a disadvantage if they didn't know how to speak English." .

But what about West Texans who haven't learned English yet? What do they think about making Spanish a part of West Texas?

"No. There are lots of Latinos here, but we're in the United States and the language is English."

Related Stories:
Illegal Town USA? Part Two
Illegal Town USA? Part One
http://www.cbs7kosa.com/news/details.asp?ID=3292

Duplicate Post
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-91013-correa.html