Minnesota growth in diversity outpacing US as
a whole, by Ann Corcoran 6/22/18.
Not
a huge shock for most followers of Refugee Resettlement Watch, but good to see that the citizens of
Minnesota are being given the hard facts so that they can decide what will be
best for their families going forward.
From Twin
Cities Pioneer Press:
Minnesota continues to grow more diverse, according to population estimates
released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Thursday.
The latest data showed that populations of people of color have
increased faster in Minnesota than the rest of the nation since 2010.
Meanwhile, the state’s white population growth remained relatively stagnant.
The
change can be seen in the ethnic communities emerging around St. Paul; in the
expansion of organizations such as the Karen Organization of Minnesota and the
Hmong American Partnership; and in St. Paul Public Schools, where in 2010
district families spoke 77 different languages at home — that stood at 128
languages in 2017.
Janna
Johnson, an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey
School of Public Affairs who studies minority populations, said the latest
numbers likely don’t tell the entire story.
Minority populations tend to be undercounted, meaning Minnesota’s is
likely even larger, she said.
[Why? Because minorities
don’t answer census questions or simply hide.—-ed] No need to learn English, just go to Minnesota and keep speaking
Somali!
Mohamad SheikOmer,
who started the Somali-Oromo Peace Task Force in St. Paul, has noticed the
uptick in diversity since he moved to Minnesota. SheikOmer, who has a wife and
seven children, moved from Ethiopia to Maryland in April 2014, then St. Paul
three months later.
He relocated his family to Minnesota because there are more
opportunities, noting for example it’s much easier to find people who speak
Somali in St. Paul than in Maryland.
“We can help each other at work, how to get benefits, how to
get schooling,” SheikOmer said.
More here.
“Benefits”
is, of course, a big reason refugees are migrating to Minnesota and a good
reason Minnesota was chosen as a prime resettlement site more than thirty years ago by the US State Department
and its contractors (Catholic Charities, Lutheran Immigration, and World
Relief) for Somali resettlement.
Just
a few days ago I told readers how many Somalis have been resettled in the US
under the UN/US
Refugee Admissions Program since the early 1980’s, here.
Don’t
miss this
post: You are old and
we are taking over!
Norb Leahy, Dunwoody
GA Tea Party Leader
No comments:
Post a Comment