The story is the same from city to city. The United States has resettled nearly 70,000 Somali refugees since the early 1980’s and they have in turn brought extended families and produced large families of their own, and now they are spreading out from originial resettlement cities in search of jobs and rural living. The reports are all the same and follow the theme of this AP article of a few weeks ago from the Lincoln Journal.
He (Somali refugee) heard about Lexington, like many others, from a friend. He was attracted to the job, cheap living in a quiet town, and the chance to be surrounded by other Somalians.
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Just how many African refugees have moved to Lexington and other meatpacking towns in the state and across the Midwest is unclear. But refugee resettlement officials and local immigration specialists say there has been a sharp increase.
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One problem landlords faced when African refugees first began flowing into Lexington: burning wood on top of indoor stovetops to cook food.
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The rapid change in towns like Lexington has been a shock to the system of services immigrants rely on, such as health care. Kutschkau said there has been a shortage of medicine for an influx of refugees who needed to be treated for tuberculosis.
We have written many posts about tuberculosis and how some cities are struggling with large numbers of immigrants who need treatment and can’t afford it. See our “health issues” category here.