Dec 20, 2007 / 09:00 am
Bishop John Wester of Salt Lake City on Wednesday spoke to residents of southern Utah on the topic of immigration, the Salt Lake Tribune reports.
Utah’s Washington County has seen a 160 percent population increase since 1990 to more than 126,000 people. The population of St. George, the county seat, has increased 137 percent to 70,000 people. Latinos are estimated to make up 10 percent of the population, and their numbers are rising.
Recent city elections featured a heated immigration debate fueled by tensions with new Latino residents.
Bishop Wester, who heads the committee on migration for the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops, addressed the St. George Area Chamber of Commerce on the need to accommodate new immigrants.