KGUN9 On Your Side, Tucson News, Weather & SportsTourism industry tries to combat SB 1070 boycotts
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Reporter: Claire Doan
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) – The Arizona Governor's Conference on Tourism has a new and challenging topic of discussion this year: how to combat the negative economic impact stemming from boycotts and protests against the state's new immigration law, set to take effect at the end of July.
The challenges from SB 1070 come at an especially difficult time for the tourism industry, which announced new statistics today showing a decline in travel spending of 10 percent in 2009 – resulting from the economic recession, the rate of unemployment and other factors.
"We know the boycott issue is disturbing. The market for groups is just so important in Arizona, and the boycotts have caused them to cancel," said Sherry Henry, the Director of the Arizona Officer of Tourism.
Tourism leaders say there are no definitive statistics on how the boycotts have adversely affected their industry; the only reliable figure right now is the $12 million that hotels have lost as a result of groups canceling their trips to Arizona.
Weeks ago, Governor Jan Brewer approved $250,000 in funding from the Department of Commerce to combat misperceptions about the state and SB 1070, supplemented by another $30,000 from the Arizona Hotel & Lodging Association.
The Tourism & Economic Development Task Force, a group of tourism leaders, has already made a number of recommendations on how to improve the state's image.
"Those recommendations include ideas on research, public relations, grass roots outreach and advertising as well as meetings, conventions and association outreach," Brewer said at the conference. "The focus needs to be on educating travelers about the realities and the truths about SB 1070 and clearing up misinformation and misunderstanding."
Not everyone shared Brewer's optimism. State Senator Paula Aboud (D-Ariz.) says the Governor focused her speech on the wrong issues.
"I actually came to this not for the lunch. I came to hear the Governor and what she was going to say to help promote tourism and to inspire and motivate the industry," Aboud told a group of reporters. "I felt completely deflated because the message is that we have to go out and educate people about this SB 1070. No that's not what we have to do."
Tourism leaders say they are most focused on finding strategies to mitigate the effects of SB 1070 boycotts on people in the industry.
Debbie Johnson, head of the Arizona Hotel & Lodging Association, said: "Unfortunately, people don't realize we have 200,000 employees in our industry. And they need paychecks just like you and I do."
