Editor: If you visit RRW often, you know that we occasionally post comments (and guest opinion pieces) from readers. This was sent to our gmail account a few days ago and I wanted you to see it. I’ll make an observation at the end.
From someone whose family has lived in Lewiston for almost 100 years:
I just wanted to give you an update on what Refugee Resettlement can do to a city, Lewiston, ME is the home of my Grandparents, since the early 20’s, yes the 1920’s.
Most of my siblings were born in and around Lewiston, as well as my Mother, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.
I was really surprised when I returned after being away for about 20 years, to see the Somalian refugees in the town. I don’t mind other people, but the sheer numbers of people, then I spoke to my cousins who have lived there all their lives, and they explained the issues of crime, school violence, poverty, rejection of American values, and the general hatred of women by the Somali refugees.
They kept saying, we can’t get out here to look at a location where family used to live, and how the area had really gone down hill since the refugees arrived. Some of my cousins were victims of violence from Somali Gangs, and that the schools were in shambles because they couldn’t handle the language and culture issues that arise when you dump 15,000 Somali’s on a small town in Maine.
The destruction is irreversible, and horrific, I cried when I saw some of the town and how much it had changed. For example Kennedy park was a beautiful place where my Mom and sisters went to picnic and how nice it was. We were told to stay in the car because Somali drug dealers had taken over the park, and it wasn’t safe.
This type of immigration, the dumping of large numbers of refugees, does not work, it doesn’t help integration. I’m from Orange County California, I went to school with Mexican Gangs, who had their territory, Vietnamese gangs that arrived in large numbers in the 70’s and Korean Gangs that had arrived in the 60’s. Immigrants do not integrate when we drop them in large numbers, it doesn’t work, they don’t integrate.
I love the diversity of America, I am the product of immigrants, but all you have to do is look at what we have done in the past to see that mass integration [does he mean mass immigration?—ed] does not work. We need to drop these immigrants in small numbers across America so they can integrate and become part of the culture instead of allowing them to cluster in large numbers which means that integration will be slow if at all.
My thoughts on this issue of numbers and integration…
First, the Open Borders Left wants to use the word ‘integration’ rather than the word ‘assimilation,’ see here.
But, more importantly readers should know that refugees move in America—especially Somalis who got to Lewiston many years ago after they ‘discovered’ Maine’s generous welfare (see here).
Somalis can be placed (and they are) all over America by the resettlement contracting agencies, but often quickly move to be with their own kind of people in Minneapolis, Columbus, Seattle, San Diego, Lewiston and elsewhere.
So for all of you pushing for your governors to block resettlement (it will help some), remember though that you can’t stop secondary migration!
Say for example, the Refugee Admissions Program eventually allows certain states (governors) to stop the placement of refugees in their states, and say Vermont wants refugees and New Hampshire doesn’t, then they will place them in Vermont, but then encourage them to move over to New Hampshire after a few months. Likewise as Minnesota opens its arms to more Somalis they will eventually drift in to neighboring states! (Hijra!)
So, yes, integration/assimilation can’t happen when ethnic enclaves build in certain cities, but…..
The real problem, in my opinion, is that the overall numbers being admitted to the US are too high!
We need an immigration time out!
This post is filed in our ‘comments worth noting/guest posts’ category, here. Our Lewiston archive is here.