For the fortunate, it could mean cherished green cards, which permit holders to live and work permanently in the U.S. and can lead to citizenship. El Centro in Kansas City, Kan., hopes to open an office in Overland Park by the spring and eventually put another satellite in Olathe. And Guadalupe Center on Kansas City's West Side is looking to fill needs around St. Joseph, Sedalia and Springfield. You have a whole new set of immigrants moving in all over the Midwest, and the basic services are trying to keep up. The need is greater than we can provide.
Typical needs are English classes, translators, housing, education and health care.
Family Values Hispanic teen births up, defying U.S. trend Recent figures released by the Illinois Department of Public Health celebrated the state's 40-year low in the number of births to teens in 1999. In fact, Hispanic girls lead the nation in the teen birthrate, with about 93 births per 1,000 Hispanic teens per year compared to the overall national teen birthrate of about 50 births per 1,000, according to preliminary 1999 figures from The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. Now it appears the U.S. Congress is preparing to respond favorably to a presidential bill to open borders. Due the circumstances the United States was forced to seek hands south of the border and Mexican workers were allowed to enter the United States legally to work in the fields and to help manufacture arms. Some 300,000 Mexican workers are expected to cross the border annually if Congress approves the new law.