Shortly after it was settled in 1842, the community of Farmers Branch advertised throughout Europe and the eastern United States, hoping to entice new residents to flock there and help build the future.

"During the years 1845-1850, it was the best known of all the Texas settlements," according to the history posted on the city's official Web site.

Well, some 150 years later, the Dallas suburb of 27,700 no longer has to advertise itself. Farmers Branch clearly has placed itself on the map, inviting the world to take another look at the town that earned its name because of its once-rich soil.

I'm afraid that what people around the country are seeing today of this small northwest Dallas County community is not the same charm that attracted settlers in the 1800s.

I know that for me, Farmers Branch is not as inviting today as it was even several months ago. It certainly is not on a list of places I would like to visit anytime soon.

You see, in the past few days, Farmers Branch has shown itself to be a small town, not based on its population or geographic size, but because of its mean-spirited and backward attitude.

Surely you've heard that the City Council there, led by one ambitious and misguided member, passed a series of ordinances last week, ostensibly to curb the flow of illegal immigrants into the city.

Under the guise of doing what the federal government is too chicken to do, the Farmers Branch council made English the city's official language, required landlords to refuse to rent to anyone without proof of legal status or citizenship and ordered its Police Department to target "criminal aliens" through cooperation with federal immigration officials.

Boy, they've really gotten tough on illegal immigrants over there. And in doing so, they have become the talk of the nation as many people applaud them and others condemn them.

In many circles, Councilman Tim O'Hare, the ringleader of the movement, is being heralded as a hero. Other circles are challenging these obviously divisive actions.

But let's get to point of why these ordinances were proposed and passed in the first place. This is not about controlling immigration and protecting the town.

Plain and simple, these ordinances clearly express bitterness toward people whom many find easy to put down in public conversation and, frankly, openly victimize.

These new laws are acts of bigotry, and the people of Farmers Branch -- whether they were for or against these newly adopted measures -- ought to be ashamed of what their city has become.

What happened to the pioneer spirit that invited outsiders to come?

Maybe the city, which incorporated in 1946 with a population of 800, was getting "browner" faster that some of the folk there wanted.

In recent years, the Hispanic population of Farmers Branch has grown tremendously, along with that in all of Texas. In 1970, for example, Hispanics made up only 5 percent of Farmers Branch residents. The 2000 Census shows that Farmers Branch has a Hispanic population of 37.2 percent, and it is still climbing.

Interestingly, on its Web site, the city touts its commitment to diversity and to serving people from different backgrounds, namely through bilingual help desks in the library and city offices, bilingual literature explaining various city programs and library classes in English as a second language.

I'm afraid that is one page of the Web site that will probably have to be revised.

I know some of you already shouting, "But these ordinances were meant to deal with the illegal immigrants, not the good, law-abiding ones."

Convince yourselves of that if you can.

As for me, I'm convinced that the "B" in the city's distinguished "FB" logo now stands for Bigotry.