Controversial U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, talked Friday with incoming Lewiston City Council member Safiya Khalid after a political rally in New Hampshire.
Somalis
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, Maine
Trump administration extends special protections for small group of Somalis
The Trump administration has extended special protections for a small group of Somalis living in the United States, after dismantling the same program for immigrants from Central America and other parts of the world. Thousands of Somalis live in Maine, but only a handful is affected by Thursday’s announcement. The federal government decided it would […]
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Posted inOur View, sj-web
Our View: Intolerance shown at the movie theater
An Auburn man, a regular 40-something working dad, took his wife to see “Transformers: The Last Knight” on Sunday. The theater was busy, as you might expect given the much-anticipated opening weekend for the 3D movie — fifth in the popular sci-fi action series. During the movie, some children started behaving badly, laying down on […]
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
Lewiston offers lessons amid refugee crisis
LEWISTON — The arrival of thousands of Somali refugees in this former mill city in the nation’s whitest state sparked a backlash at first, complete with a rally of white supremacists and a pig’s head rolled into the local mosque. Fifteen years later, the Somali newcomers are solid members of the community, as evidenced by a […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Viewpoint: Somali community could be Maine’s economic development strategy
Last week, Democratic candidate Ben Chin beat Robert Macdonald, the Republican incumbent two-term mayor, but not by enough to avert a runoff. Although issues such as a proposed pay-per-bag trash fee reared up in the campaign, one of the biggest sources of contention was public assistance for asylum seekers from Africa, who continue to join […]
Posted inLetters
T. Hart: Macdonald cares for Lewiston
It is about time the city of Lewiston has a mayor who speaks the truth about immigrants coming to this city. The taxpayers just cannot afford them anymore. They need to go somewhere else. I cannot afford higher taxes because of them. The city should take care of its own who need it first. I […]
Posted inOp-Eds
RSU 16 students tackle subject of Somali migration to Lewiston
Students at Bruce M. Whittier Middle School frequent the city of Lewiston to visit family, shop and recreate, and during these visits the students have noticed the increase in Somali population. Based on those observations, eighth grade teachers Alice Shea and Erica Swenson created a study project to analyze media coverage of the Somali migration, […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Whittier School student, Morgan Brousseau: Try to notice the positive contributions
In the words of Pope Paul John ll, “Have no fear of moving into the unknown. Simply step out fearlessly, knowing I am with you, therefore no harm can befall you.” Do you believe Somalis had an impact on Lewiston? Do you know their background, what they have gone through, where they are coming from? […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Whittier Middle School student, Zach Ray: Somalis brought a new culture to Lewiston
Are the New Mainers helping or hurting the city of Lewiston? Lewiston has had a large influx of Somalis coming into the city and the community wants to know — is that a positive or negative thing? Somalis are helping the community of Lewiston. They are using old, abandoned buildings and opening stores and living […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Whittier Middle School student, Rachel Kuklinski: We need to challenge what we hear
You’ve probably seen them walking down the street. They’re different, you think. They don’t look like you. Many don’t talk like you. But are they really different? Or are we just reacting to what we think we know? The rumors we’ve heard? The biases we’ve grown up with? Perhaps they’re the same as you and […]