UCO alum advocating for change and resources for the Hispanic community 

Fernando Baquera is a brother of Omega Delta Phi Fraternity, Inc., a DACA recipient, a college graduate, a teacher and an advocate for the Hispanic community. 

Upon graduating from the University of Central Oklahoma, he got the opportunity to become a teacher and work with newcomer students. 

“Newcomer students are new to the country,” Baquera said. “All of my students have been in the U.S. for less than two years.”

Baquera and his students protested House Bill 4156 last spring. The bill would specifically target undocumented immigrants who willingly enter and remain in the state.

Since then, Baquera has been involved in helping organize various protests in Oklahoma City to spread awareness and resources for his community. 

“I just saw a need to have people encourage other people to create spaces and events where they could express what they feel in the moment in any political climate,” said Baquera. 

Baquera wants to have a main purpose for every event he organizes. 

“I want them to be educational and I want somebody to be able to take something away and pass it on to somebody else,” said Baquera. 

Baquera helped organize the protest outside the Oklahoma State Department Education meeting on Jan. 28, where an estimated 250-300 people attended, even though he worried about risking his job.

 “It affects my workplace, it affects my family, it affects my personal life,” said Baquera. “It’s a risk that I am willing to take for this cause that I really do believe in.”

The attendees were protesting a new rule that would require parents to provide proof of their child’s immigration status when enrolling them into schools.

Another protest Baquera had a hand in helping organize was the protest for immigration rights at Scissortail Park on Sunday, Feb. 2. 

According to Baquera, an estimated 7,000 people attended the protest. 

“We told the parks no more than 500 people would show up, but there were over seven thousand people that showed up,” said Baquera. “I never expected so much of our community to come out especially in times where there is so much fear and anxiety with what’s going on.”

Baquera also helped organize a vigil for Jocelynn Rojo Carranza after members of the community reached out and Baquera got permission from her father. 

Jocelynn Rojo Carranza was an 11 year-old girl from Texas who died by suicide after being bullied over her family’s immigration status.

According to Baquera, the vigil was to honor her life and hear from people in the community about what they’ve experienced in the last few weeks.

Fidgets were donated to give to school counselors to bring awareness to bullying about legal status. According to Baquera, he was able to deliver toy fidgets to six elementary schools and two middle schools in the area. 

Baquera joined the Hispanic American Student Association, Omega Delta Phi Fraternity, Inc. and Sigma Lambda Alpha Sorority Inc. as a guest speaker for their Broncho Unido event where he discussed the importance of voting. 

After HASA saw the work Baquera was doing on his social media, they reached out to him to have a similar event on the university’s campus. 

“They really felt that it was needed and necessary here at UCO,” said Baquera. “UCO is predominantly a white institution, so they believed it was important for us, minorities, to raise our voice and do this peaceful march.”

Baquera wants to keep helping his community by educating them about their rights, creating events to empower them and connecting them to resources. 

“There is so much work to do I just feel like I helped get something started here at UCO,” said Baquera. “I hope everyone involved is able to continue to use their voice and advocate for their community.”