Mexican Consulate in LR rolls out a welcome mat
Posted on Thursday, April 26, 2007
“Welcome to Mexico,” Andres Chao, chief of the first diplomatic mission to locate in Arkansas, said to the gleeful crowd.
The new consul was addressing a group in the Mexican Consulate of Little Rock, which opened Wednesday in a lively, festive and peaceful ceremony.
The consulate will aid Mexican nationals living in Arkansas, facilitate commerce between the state and the country, and promote cultural and educational exchange, and demonstrates Little Rock’s ascendance onto the world stage, Mexican and Arkansas dignitaries said.
The consulate is inviolable and cannot be entered by American authorities without the consul’s permission, according to the international convention governing consular relations. The consulate won’t pay taxes, either.
American and Mexican officials of virtually all branches and levels of government, executives, local and foreign journalists, and others filled the room, making up a variety of individual talents and backgrounds that Chao noted in his brief address.
“This is precisely a clear example of what the consulate can generate: more Mexico in Arkansas, and more Arkansas in Mexico,” said Chao, 42, who moved to Arkansas over the summer with his wife and three children.
The ceremony at the consulate at 3500 S. University Ave. in Little Rock began with the singing of the Mexican and American national anthems, and continued with speeches in English and Spanish praising the consulate as an opportunity to increase trade and cultural dialogue between Mexico and Arkansas.
Describing the occasion as “a terrific day both for Little Rock, the central Arkansas community and the state of Arkansas,” Lt. Gov. Bill Halter said he hoped the consulate would help Mexico become the state’s No. 1 trading partner. (It’s currently Canada ).
Arturo Sarukhan, the Mexican ambassador to the United States, said the ceremony comes as Mexico seeks to “deepen and widen our relationship with a vibrant, diverse and plural America.” Arkansas Court of Appeals Judge Wendell L. Griffen observed the ceremony and pledged afterward to learn Spanish.
The ceremony included the signing of a sister-city agreement between Little Rock and Pachuca, in the Mexican state of Hidalgo. On hand to sign the deal was Omar Fayad, that city’s mayor, and Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola.
“To be a great city, you’ve got to recognize that there’s certainly an international context,” Stodola said in an interview. “Having a consulate here recognizes that the world is getting much, much smaller, that we have very strong ties with the country of Mexico, and this will only create stronger ties.” Near the conclusion of the ceremony, the Mexican and American officials, including Arkansas first lady Ginger Beebe, cut a ribbon of the red, white and green colors of the Mexican flag. Then, the crowd of about 150 shuffled outside to enjoy a meal prepared by local Mexican restaurants and a performance by musicians and dancers from Hidalgo.
The move to establish a consulate in Arkansas was initiated nearly four years ago by then-Gov. Mike Huckabee, who visited Mexico and met with then-President Vicente Fox. The Mexican government chose to open its 47 th consulate in the U. S. in Arkansas in part because the state has one of the fastest-growing Mexican-born populations in the country, officials said.
It’s uncertain how many Mexicans live in the Natural State. The U. S. Census Bureau estimates that about 131, 000 Hispanics live in Arkansas. About 100, 000 immigrants live in the state and roughly two-thirds of those hail from Mexico and other Latin American states, according to a new study by the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. About 50, 000 illegal aliens live in the state, according to the study. Chao has said the consular staff will make an effort to count Mexicans living here, partly by tallying those who go to the consulate seeking documentation, legal aid and other services.
One of the consulate’s major functions is providing passports and consular identification cards to its citizens. That’s provoked criticism from anti-illegal alien politicians and activists, who say the consular identification card, called a Matricula Consular, will make it easier for illegal aliens to thrive in Arkansas.
Indeed, a Mexican construction worker taking part in Wednesday’s festivities in the consulate parking lot said that’s the best reason, for him, to have a consulate in Arkansas.
“It is very important for us Mexicans who don’t have documents because it helps us to get our papers, to get a Matricula Consular. With that, we can cash checks,” Roman Morales of Acapulco, Mexico, said in Spanish as live mariachi music wafted over from a nearby tent. Morales, 47, said he has lived here for 10 years. Before the consulate opening, Mexican nationals who sought passports, Matricula Consulars or other services would travel to the consulate in Dallas.
The consulate will aid Mexicans regardless of their immigration status, Sarukhan said.
“When issues do arise, such as labor disputes, the consulate can support the rights of these individuals,” he said. “We cannot interfere with the application of the law in the United States, but certainly the consulates do get involved when the rights of those individuals who have been detained are violated, or when you have instances of families that have been torn asunder, and parents are deported and the kids stay here.” University of Arkansas at Little Rock Chancellor Joel Anderson said a consulate is “government at its best.” “It is government helping citizens directly. It is government assisting and guiding bewildered citizens as they confront the complexities of modern civilization.” Two protesters held placards on University Avenue urging that Mexicans be returned to Mexico.
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