Monday, April 26, 2010

Somali Strengths

Hi everyone. I am sad to say this is our last post for the semester (of course who ever wants to keep posting and following are welcome to do so) but before we go I wanted to leave everyone with a more positive strength based approach to informing you all of the Somali population. After all we are social work professionals now :) Anyway, as an experiment I did some google research and, as I predicted, I was bombarded by negative things about the Somali population. The good news, though, is that when I began to weed through I found some pretty incredible stories about the good things the Somali population is doing and also good things communities are doing to accept our new neighbors who, in my opinion, bring strength, culture, wisdom and diversity to a country that is in need of all those things. So, if you can take a moment please look at some things I have found. There is more, too, that I did not include. Many more positive things-if you just look. And if we all keep looking to the strengths I bet we will see much more!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Eb2ppDffVA&feature=related



United Somali Women of Maine http://www.uswofmaine.org/
MISSION:

The mission of United Somali Women of Maine (USWM) is to promote empowerment and a multi-cultural environment that rises up the strength of Somali women and girls by serving as cultural brokers, barrier reducers, skill enhancers and problem solvers.

HISTORY:

· Formed in 2001, by director Fatuma Hussein, to respond to the arrival of a significant population of Somali refugees and secondary migrants (refugees originally resettled to a different location in the United States who then subsequently moved to Maine).

· USWM achieved 501(c) (3) status in December 2005 and is poised to serve our community as an independent non-profit organization.

· USWM is a Somali-directed Women’s Center serving as a safe space that is respectful of gender and cultural practices of the Somali and East African community and serves as a bridge between African families in Lewiston-Auburn and Portland and service providers (the schools, social service agents, employers, police and medical community).



Somali Community Access Network
SomaliCAN
"Changing lives for the better"

About SomaliCAN:

Somali Community Access Network-SomaliCAN- is a 501 (c) (3) community-based non-profit organization headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, which has the second largest Somali population in the United States. SomaliCAN provides culturally and linguistically competent behavioral health and community support services to bridge the gap in access and utilization of services and eliminate barriers to self-sufficiency. .

Our target population is the Somali community in Ohio. The members of this community are very hardworking and determined to continually improve the quality of their lives. All of them are optimistic about the future and what it holds for them. However, most of them have had traumatic experiences in Somalia during the civil war. They lost family members and friends, land and property and were forced to run for their lives. They also face adjustment issues in America due to language barriers, cultural differences, parental-child conflicts, isolation, and overall poverty.
SomaliCAN provides family-focused treatment, prevention and community support services to people with mental illnesses, developmental disabilities and other barriers. We help clients to become self-sufficient by facilitating their active participation in community life and economic production.
Client satisfaction and service to the community are our top priorities.
Check out our various community support services by clicking on the tabs. If you need interpretation or translation services, select the page for providers.


MISSION:

Changing People's Lives for the Better through Culturally Competent Services and Resources. SomaliCAN provides culture-specific behavioral health and community support services to the Somali community to maximize the potential of each individual.

http://www.somalican.org/home


And please watch this short news brief...
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/04/08/somalia.fashion.twins/index.html

7 comments:

  1. First of all thank you so much to your whole group for all the valuable information through out this semester! I feel like I learned a lot about Somali culture and about the oppressions this population has faced in Africa and in the U.S.
    This post was another great one. I loved the story about the designer twins! It was definitely a positive message and it seems like they are doing a great job of staying true to their culture and tying it into U.S. culture!

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  2. It was nice to read all the positives about what the Somali population has here in Maine. It was also a good turn of events, considering, as you said, it was all negative up until now. Very good information!!!

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  3. I just want to say thank you for the showing us the positive aspects of the Somali culture. It is nice to hear the good things for a change instead of all the negative things. I feel this was a great way to end the semester on your topic. The video was very powerful as well!

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  4. Melissa this is amazing! Thank you. This is food for my soul and brain. Strengths perspective

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  5. It's great when you can end on a positive note and to see change in an area that needs it. Your posts have really made me aware about he Somali population here in Maine and have helped to understand the issues facing them on a regular basis. Great job.

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  6. I really good idea showing the positive aspects of the Somali culture!

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  7. awesome job melissa! this is a great final post to walk away with!

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