La Semana celebrates 20 years
La Semana hoped then, as it does today, to serve as a bridge between the city’s Anglo and Spanish Speaking populations, helping to enrich both cultures while informing the public and giving the immigrant community a voice. La Semana was the first bilingual publication in the state, and remains Tulsa’s longest operating publication serving the Spanish speaking community.
Over the years La Semana has celebrated the accomplishments of Tulsa’s immigrant population, but the newspaper has also been there to shine a light on some of the city’s darker moments. This was the case in March of 2007, when Eleazar Torres Gomez, a worker at the uniform company Cintas, was pulled by a conveyor into a 300-degree industrial dryer and trapped for 20 minutes, dying of burns and trauma. We followed the case as the company fought against federal fines and citations, and although the family of Torres Gomez ultimately did receive compensation, no amount of money can make up for the loss of a father, son, and husband. Sadly, another Cintas worker died in an eerily similar accident in Louisville, Kentucky in 2011.
In 2006-2007 La Semana featured extensive coverage of the debate over, and eventual passage of, Oklahoma’s notorious anti-immigrant law, HB 1804.
Some of the happier stories La Semana has brought its readers over the past 20 years include the many colorful festivals celebrating Hispanic and Latin heritage, such as Cinco de Mayo, Festival Americas, Wonders of Mexico, and festivals honoring the city’s beloved shrines to Our Lady of Guadalupe and Saint Toribio Romo, protector saint of migrants.
In addition to local and community stories, La Semana has published exclusive interviews with notable in
dividuals such as former Mexican President Vicente Fox, comedian Jorge Ortiz de Pinedo, acclaimed actor Edward James Olmos, the star players of Cruz Azul, and Mexican musical greats Tigres del Norte and Diana Reyes.
La Semana is proud to have been the recipient of numerous awards for our reporters’ writing over the years, and last year our publisher, Guillermo Rojas, was named Publisher of the Year by the National Association of Hispanic Publications.
A lot has happened in Tulsa and across the globe since La Semana published its first issue in January of 2001, from the terrorist attacks in September of that year to the pandemic that has consumed all of our lives in 2020. Here are some statistics showing just a few of the ways things have changed over the past two decades:
Tulsa County’s Hispanic/latinx population has tripled since 2001, from around 35,000 to 110,000, and that’s a conservative estimate. The impact to the local economy has been more than proportionate, due to the entrepreneurial spirit of the Latin community.
Since 2001 there have been 5 Tulsa Mayors; 4 Oklahoma Governors; 4 US Presidents (counting Joe Biden); 4 Mexican Presidents; 3 Popes; and 5 World Cup Champions.
When La Semana published its first edition, Susan Savage was Mayor of Tulsa, George W. Bush was President of the United States, and Vicente Fox was President of Mexico. It would be five more years before the first iphone, and broadband internet was still in its infancy.
La Semana has shared many things with our readers these past 20 years, but what we are proudest of are what some might consider the smaller stories, but which we feel represent the heart of the community. These are the profiles of local immigrants – those who faced enormous odds to come here, start businesses, and make Tulsa their new family home. These are the stories of artists, activists, priests and pastors. They are your friends, neighbors, family and loved ones, and it is their stories that make Tulsa great and make this newspaper what it is today. We thank you all and look forward to the next 20 years. (La Semana)