…..and RRW gets called names!
This is Part II of the series from a publication of the University of Minnesota in which an explanation for Somali gang/clan violence in Minneapolis is sought. (See Part I here.) I’ve heard of all sorts of negative consequences of the federally mandated ‘no child left behind’ program but this is the first time ethnic gang violence is being blamed on it (that I know of!). And, look who is supporting the notion—Omar ‘Jesse Jackson’ Jamal.
Actually to be fair, there are many other reasons suggested in this article that are more plausible reasons for gang violence than the local school system, but just as Jesse Jackson has been unable to admit that the responsibility for stemming such violence rests within the family, so too does this article make a stretch to such excuses as the BUSH Administration’s efforts to fix our educational system (and that there is not enough of your tax dollars thrown at the problem!)
Here is what the article says about ‘no child left behind’:
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 forced public schools, for budgetary reasons, to withdraw resources from programs that helped students transition into American culture.
“They fired maybe 70 teachers,” Adan said. “As soon as that happened, kids started dropping out and failing. It’s moving from the school system to the criminal justice system.”
Somalis in the American education system sometimes struggle to keep pace, Somali Justice Advocacy Center director Omar Jamal said, which is a key factor in Somali youth shying away from formal schooling and turning to the street life.
“When they hit the wall, they find out they won’t be able to fit in here,” he said, “then they went and picked up the things they knew the best: Violence and gangs.”
Now here is the best part of this article, a comment from anonymous (most everyone commenting here is anonymous):
They’re [not clear who the ‘they’ is] probably here already, but I wanted to make people aware of a certain type of person that will inevitably show up in the comments section of articles like these. Please check out this website, but only if you can stomach reading the views of xenophobia, racism, and intolerance. Read a couple articles, and be sure to skim the comments sections.
[I guess anonymous didn’t read enough to know that words like ‘racism’ and ‘xenophobia’ don’t deter us from presenting information to the public.]
Now some google stats for that site:
945 pages from that site with the word somali
239 pages with the word tax on it
196 pages with the words somali + tax
They seem to be awfully concerned about the Somali community, if you know what I mean. And taxes too. Taxes are really important to them.
[I wonder if it occured to anonymous that perhaps the reason RRW has so many posts on Somalis is because Somalis are making news across this country and it isn’t good news.]
Now, some people that are ignorant or misinformed are worth talking to, or arguing with to convince them they are wrong. And some people are not, they are beyond reason. Either way, it might be a good idea to take a look around that site to see what their talking points are, so you can decide for yourself if someone is worth engaging in debate or discourse. Don’t blow a gasket on someone that isn’t even worth honking at!
While I appreciate these comment sections, I sometimes wonder if they really benefit the community.
[I guess they don’t ‘benefit the community’ if they are opposed to anonymous’ view of the world.]
Personally, some of the comments make me so angry it distracts me from the importance of the issue at hand. In conclusion, if you really care about this issue and want to help or just learn more about what’s going on, show up at community meetings. Volunteer. Talk to your neighbors. Don’t be held hostage by fear and intolerance.
I have to laugh, we didn’t “inevitably show up” as anonymous says, but were put in the comments by anonymous who brought new readers to RRW, so thanks!