Three groups advocating for “unity” and “understanding” will hold a community meeting to try to exorcize bad feelings that came to the fore last year when increasing Somali refugee numbers in the meatpacking town began to impact local residents. If you recall the tensions came to a head and made national news when the Tyson’s chicken processing plant agreed to drop the Labor Day holiday in favor of a Muslim holiday.
Anyway, tempers have been simmering ever since and now community organizing groups want to try to bring everyone together. From the Shelbyville Times-Gazette today.
Local members of a statewide grassroots organization are planning an event next Thursday that is intended to “promote unity and deepen understanding amongst the diverse populations in Shelbyville.”
The Bedford County Chapter of Statewide Organizing for Justice will be holding the event Thursday, Nov. 6 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Fly Arts Building, located at 204 S. Main St. in Shelbyville.
The event is being cosponsored by the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition and El Centro Latino of Bedford County.
The Community Unity Night will include a panel of community leaders “who will speak about finding common ground around the Golden Rule (‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you’)”, according to the group. The evening will also include a community discussion on this issue, “to promote strength in unity in the county.”
Are any of you wondering what the wisdom is in having this meeting two days after what is likely to be a close Presidential election where both sides are pretty keyed-up? What do you think the chances are that one segment of the Shelbyville community is going to be pretty steamed and in no mood to be conciliatory at a “Community Unity Night”?
Or, is it possible they know very well what they are doing. Expecting Obama to win, they are making their move to start to shove “unity” on Shelbyville whether they like it or not? [Bad, Ann, you are getting so cynical!]
The other two members of the community organizing troika are the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition and a Hispanic advocacy group.
TIRRC is a statewide, immigrant and refugee-led collaboration that works to empower immigrants and refugees to develop a unified voice, defend their rights and create an atmosphere in which they are viewed as positive contributors to the state.
El Centro Latino is a local organization that advocates and aids Latino residents of Bedford County.
To learn more about how the Shelbyville issue developed use our search function for “Shelbyville.”
And, by the way, remember that Hispanics and Somalis are not getting along so well in some other meatpacking towns! See Greeley/Grand Island here.
Endnote: Going to the meeting? Have some fun! Learn about the Delphi Technique and see if you can spot it being used on the meeting participants. Now that our eyes have been opened about the community organizing profession we need to be smarter about recognizing strategies used to manipulate communities.