TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa is joining an exclusive club as a certified “Welcoming City.” Tulsa is the 21st in the country and the first in Oklahoma.
Leaders from Welcoming America, an Atlanta-based organization, presented Mayor GT Bynum with a certificate.
When Nem Lun immigrated to Tulsa as a teenager, she didn’t understand why her parents chose Tulsa.
"Because Tulsa is not a city that you see on a movie," Lun said, "It’s not like LA, or Miami or New York.
Lun said her dad always aspired toward the American dream. Tulsa was picked for its Zomi population. The Luns are Zo people, who come from Myanmar.
Welcoming America said they're a "nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that leads a movement of inclusive communities becoming more prosperous by ensuring everyone belongs."
Their seven areas of framework for the Welcoming City Certification include:
- Civic Engagement
- Connected Communities
- Economic Development
- Education
- Equitable Access
- Government and Community Leadership
- Safe Communities
Regional manager Jordyn Krumroy presented Bynum with Tulsa’s welcoming city certificate.
"Cities are really at the front line of welcoming," Krumroy said, "Cities feel demographic change, they feel the effects of the economy, they really see it firsthand."
Tulsa joins places like Dallas, Louisville, and Salt Lake City in this designation. All are considered “Republican” cities, but Bynum says this transcends politics.
"I would ask my fellow Tulsans to think about the kind of cities that you would want your ancestors to come to," Bynum said, "That’s the kind of city we want Tulsa to be for immigrants that are coming to our city today."
The Luns immigrated to Tulsa during the recession. That posed financial challenges on top of the family’s language barrier.
"I had to go to doctor’s appointments with them or just go with them everywhere as their personal interpreter," Lun said.
Experiences like that frustrated a young Lun, but she is proud of the wisdom it brought her.
"The older I get and the more I’m here, I’m glad that we moved to Tulsa," Lun said.
Renewal for Tulsa's certification will be up in four years.
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