Boomtown, U.S.A.
In Arkansas, a new economy--and an unlikely Xanadu
Womack's image could use some polishing. In March, three Hispanic residents of Rogers filed a racial profiling lawsuit against the mayor, police chief, and the city. They claim cops pulled them over without probable cause and illegally asked for immigration papers. Womack would not comment on the lawsuit. But he admits there are racial tensions between non-Hispanic whites and Hispanics, whose share of the population jumped from nearly zero to 20 percent in 10 years. The transformation has been so rapid that longtime natives chafe when they see signs in Spanish at Wal-Mart and Price Cutter. "It's a hillbilly town that's grown up too fast," says Jeff Allen Harris, 20, a lifetime resident of Rogers who is of Mexican and American Indian descent.
A perception of increased social problems has contributed to the resentment. Violent crime, poverty, and teen pregnancy rates, though relatively low, are trending upward. A drive-by shooting occurred in Bentonville on June 1, something unheard of in Sam Walton's day. One university survey found that only a third of residents were optimistic about the future. Hispanic immigration "creates anxieties and apprehensions on the part of people who've been here a long time," says William Mangold, director of the Center for Social Research at the University of Arkansas. "This was a lily-white community. The people liked the way it was."
Eddie Vega says the atmosphere has actually improved since he moved to neighboring Springdale in 1994. Back then, his sister, Virginia, had a Mexican grocery. Wal-Mart executives came in jackets and ties and jotted down the products they were selling. Soon, moles, chilies, and Mexican cheeses appeared on local Wal-Mart shelves. The store buckled under the competition, but Vega isn't bitter. He started a Spanish-language newspaper and two radio stations that serve the area's 26,400 Latinos. In an ending that would have made Sam Walton proud, the retail behemoth signed up as an advertiser.
More sprawl, less drawl
MOVIN' UP
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The explosive growth in Northwest Arkansas has brought with it some of the same changes seen in other boomtowns across the country. Hispanic immigrants have flooded the area, lured by construction and factory jobs. The process of assimilation has had many successes, such as large dance gatherings (above). But there have also been uneasy times and tension, as with a recent racial profiling suit filed by some Hispanic residents in Rogers. The boom also has meant a burst of commercial activity as strip malls and chain restaurants compete for space, giving the area something it's never had: traffic jams (left).
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