Posted on 05/20/2002 6:37:01 AM PDT by SheLion
Edited on 04/13/2004 2:07:48 AM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
LEWISTON, Maine (AP) A group of Somali women is creating a support group to help them ease the transition to life in Lewiston.
Azeb Hassan, a Somali woman who has spent the past 12 years in the United States, said Somali women want to work, but often can't find jobs.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
Gonna smoke a goat and make a Somali tamale!!
IMHO, WHY? is an even better question.
We might not be DIVERSE enough, but we sure aren't RICH enough either! I can see a state who's economy is doing really good to take people in.
We have over half on minimum wage. And lots of people out of work. Yet, Maine spends billions on welfare and brings more people in. It's mind boggling and I can't figure it out.
Oh yes! One person said that these people will bring in "thousands more votes for the DemocRATS." Figures, eh?
They better hurry up and register if THAT is the case. (Or not!)
Historically, once these populations are established in a place they find desirable, that is, one with excellent benefits, in particluar, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, a massive influx of additional refugees follows, consequent to refugee networking. In other small American communities, it has not mattered to these people that jobs do not exist; they arrive anyway, as long as the benefits are available.
Further, once this influx begins, it has been impossible for other small American communities to stop the flow.
It is the Maine taxpayer who will bear most of the rising costs of providing additional public services, welfare, medicaid/medicare, food, teachers, classrooms, interpreters, special education and so on.
Considering these circumstances and also that these people produce more children than the average American family, it is highly probable that within less than a decade the fabric of society in Lewiston, Maine, will be radically transformed in ways many of us would consider perilous to native well-being.
It seems to me that we as citizens of Maine have a right to ask questions and demand answers of our public administrators, state legislature, and state government with respect to this seemingly imprudent refugee policy without being called unchristian, racist, or xenophobic.
Risa
Finding out who is responsible, and who, if anyone, benefits financially, is not a straightforward task. If we don't know who is responsible, then we can't make appeals to anyone to stop the flow. So, I intend to find out.
In many states, religious and other private agencies, such as Catholic and Congregational charities, create the flow of refugees into an American community, via programs with the federal government. These agencies are pledged to take care of each refugee for 30 days beyond the date of entry into the community, after this the tax payers take over. (These agencies are known to pay little regard to a city's capacity to actually assimilate the cost of the newcomers.)
Does anyone else know?
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