I am thrilled to make my first official trip to Utah as Ambassador of Mexico to the United States. This will be an extraordinary opportunity to strengthen the ties my country has with Utah and our peoples.
The bonds that unite Mexico and Utah are deep in our common history, nourished by rich family ties and shared values. Today, these bonds can flourish thanks to the economic opportunities the USMCA offers, and this will help us overcome the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has created by generating jobs and wealth in North America.
Historically, let’s not forget that many Native American tribes, such as the Utes, can find common ancestry and lineage to indigenous peoples in Mexico. As is well-known, the Hispanic presence in Utah can be traced back to the expeditions that were carried out in 1776 by Catholic Fathers Silvestre Vélez de Escalante and Francisco Atanasio Dominguez, a native of Mexico City. And most significantly, when Latter-day Saint families led by Brigham Young entered the Great Utah Basin in 1847, this land was still Mexican territory.
Similarly, the Latter-day Saint presence in Mexico can be traced back as early as 1874, when President Brigham Young called for a mission from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Mexico. A great example of the active flows of Latter-day Saints between both countries is the case of Mr. George W. Romney, father of Sen. Mitt Romney, who was born to American parents living in Colonia Dublán, Chihuahua, a Latter-day Saint community. His family was forced to return to the United States due to the Mexican Revolution and lived in various states until settling in Salt Lake City. There are many similar stories of families who made Mexico their home and since then have contributed enormously to the prosperity of states like Chihuahua and Sonora.
In an effort to commemorate the Mexican historical milestones, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has designated 2021 as the year to honor 200 years of independence. The federal government will hold celebrations for the anniversaries of the founding of Mexico-Tenochtitlan, the fall of the Aztec Empire and the conclusion of our heroic quest for independence. As many of you may know, Utah was part of Mexico when we gained our independence from Spain almost 200 years ago. We share a common history and a common future.
For the Mexican government, it is essential to preserve and promote our history and the long-standing ties that have helped consolidate it. For this reason, in 2018, the Project for Historical and Cultural Memory of Mexico was launched to facilitate the consultation of documents and useful information that allows us to understand and admire the path that our country has followed. Undoubtedly, the active role of the Latter-day Saint community is an essential part of our history and of the Mexican society as we know it.
Today, we are privileged to have in Mexico one of the largest presence of members of this church and receive over 1,000 missionaries yearly to share their faith and love for service to our people. We also appreciate the generosity received from the church through humanitarian aid, especially in critical moments such as the earthquakes in 2017 and during the COVID-19 pandemic. I am particularly thankful for the work that many Utah-based philanthropic organizations are doing in my country.
Our first official government representation was established with a consulate in Utah in 1911, and since 1940, we have been offering our services without interruption, both to our nationals and to those who want to visit our country. While in 1900 the United States Census listed only 40 individuals of Mexican nationality living in Utah, between 1920 and 1930 the Mexican population grew to over 4,000. Today over 339,000 people have Mexican origins in Utah.
As I visit this great state, I want to recognize the inclusiveness of the people of Utah regarding immigrants and refugees. As they should be, nearly 172,200 foreign-born hard workers are a vital source of the economic growth of this state. Recognizing how immigrants contribute to the well-being and prosperity of a community, Utah was the first state in the country to offer, in 2005, driving privilege cards for undocumented immigrants — and one of the first to offer undocumented students the possibility to receive in-state tuition.
The bonds that unite Mexico and Utah are deep in our common history, nourished by rich family ties and shared values.
The Utah Compact, signed in 2010, has been a guide on the principles that steer immigration discussion in the area and has helped a civil and rich discussion on the need to address and solve the current immigration stalemate at a national level. Most recently, President Russell M. Nelson, in his first major policy statement as church leader in January 2018, called on Congress to prevent Dreamers from being deported. This inclusiveness also has showed itself during this pandemic. As in other places of this country, ethnic minorities have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19. This is a challenge in which we must all work together, regardless of whether we were born in this country.
And we will prevail. Utah and Mexico have strong family values and solid economic fundamentals. Thanks to the USMCA, we will have continuity, certainty and stability to the trade and investment flows in our countries, along with strengthening regional competitiveness with rules of origin that will allow the integration of regional value chains. At the same time, it will continue to act as an investment magnet for Utah and Mexico.
The roots of Mexican and Mexican-American heritage are deep in Utah. Through my visit, I want to celebrate the spirit of the pioneers and the traditional openness and welcoming attitude of Utahns towards immigrants and promote a new chapter in the understanding and collaboration between our peoples.
Martha Bárcena Coqui the Mexican ambassador to the United States.