Here’s a free webinar offered by the resettlement specialists, Switchboard, designed to help newcomers succeed in their changed environment. The webinar is set for noon to 1:15, Tuesday, June 25. The target audience is direct service providers, managers, and others … Continue reading →
Sahan Journal delivers again with a piece on the life circumstances that led Anquam Mahamoud to run for a Minnesota House seat in the south Minneapolis district 62B. Mahamoud was born in San Diego but moved to Minneapolis with her family … Continue reading →
The excellent online news outlet, Sahan Journal, recently offered a deep look at Minnesota’s surging Ecuadorian immigrant population in this piece, Ecuadorians fleeing violence and economic distress seek a new start in Minnesota. While fewer than 200 Ecuadorian emigres arrived … Continue reading →
Find out more about how to better serve immigrant families that include children with significant medical conditions during this 11 am, Monday, February 26 webinar sponsored by Switchboard. About 10–15 percent of refugee children have significant medical conditions, and their … Continue reading →
Peter Wang served in a familiar role for his Florida family. His parents, who had been smuggled into the United States from Fujian, a province in southern China, in the late 1990s, arrived without knowing English. They worked in restaurant … Continue reading →
Get the low-down on substance abuse issues in refugee and immigrant communities at the Tuesday, February 13 meeting of the Minnesota Immigrant and Refugee Health Network. Set for 9:30 to 11 am, this online and phone session will bring you … Continue reading →
The world of commotion that drives refugees from their homes sometimes spills over into their new home here, with distress and tensions that can have an impact on community sponsors, volunteers and resettlement office staff. Here’s a webinar on basic … Continue reading →
The excellent Sahan Journal reports a recent three-fold increase in Afghan refugees landing in Minnesota, and states that even that is an underestimate. According to the Journal, “In 2018, 332 people in Minnesota reported being born in Afghanistan, a number … Continue reading →
Hoping to understand and work more effectively with recent Afghan refugees? Take a look at this deep collection of respiratory illness-related information and resources available via the University of Minnesota’s National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants (NRC-RIM). With … Continue reading →
What were the wins, challenges and lessons learned as the Minnesota Department of Public Health’s Refugee and International Health program grappled with the pandemic’s effect on refugee, immigrant and migrant (RIM) populations? Get an assessment at this webinar, Cultural Communications … Continue reading →
Are you or your co-workers worn down by the stress of trying to meet the needs of immigrant and refugee communities? Here’s information that can help, to be offered by the Metro Immigrant and Refugee Health Network in a WebEx … Continue reading →
Among the challenges for refugee youth: overcoming stress resulting from migration and resettlement. At worst they can be subject to abuse, exploitation and trafficking, but also routinely suffer from limited access to resources and the dislocation of existing as a … Continue reading →
Get a handle on understanding the effect of traumatic stress on children who have been displaced and relocated by force in this free webinar, Traumatic Stress Among Refugee Children and Youth, set for noon to 1:30 pm, Wednesday, June 21. … Continue reading →
Communicating health risks in an emergency to immigrant, refugee and migrant communities can be tricky. Get help via this best practices webinar, set for Tuesday, May 9, noon – 1:30 p.m., offered by the Minnesota Department of Health and the … Continue reading →
For would-be asylum seekers attempting to enter the US, the road got longer last week, as President Joe Biden announced new restrictions on people fleeing conditions in Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Haiti. Those who simply show up at the border … Continue reading →
Here’s another rendering of the trauma that can underline a refugee’s life, this time describing the flight of “Amin” from Afghanistan as the Taliban takes over. The film, Flee, is a true story, rendered primarily in animation in part to … Continue reading →
Here’s a sweet, short video on how to keep your new baby safe, offered up in English, Arabic, Dari, Burmese, Karen, Lingala, Kinyarwanda, Nepali, Pashto, Swahili, Tigrinya, Ukrainian, French, Russian and Spanish. In simple, direct language, Who She Will Become … Continue reading →
As if being uprooted from your life isn’t tough enough for refugees and immigrants, there are more dangers once they arrive in the US. Among them: the scam artists waiting to take advantage. You can learn more about how to … Continue reading →
A recent story in the New York Times asked the question, Can Republicans and Democrats Find a Way Forward on Immigration? Reporter Eileen Sullivan observes that movement on this sticky issue will necessitate compromise, a quality Washington finds short supply. Three … Continue reading →
Among the consequences of the US collapse in Afghanistan, the war in Ukraine, and the disintegration of Venezuela: an even longer wait for refugee status for people from other parts of the world. The New York Times recently reported that … Continue reading →
The New York Times explores another tragic dimension of the immigrant and refugee experience in this story, Missing the Home You Needed to Leave: There is a name for the specific type of grief that both refugees and migrants experience. … Continue reading →
True or False: Immigrants will take American jobs, lower wages, and especially hurt the poor. Get a straight answer to this and 14 other common myths about immigrants in the United States. The Cato Institute’s Alex Nowrasteh examines familiar complaints … Continue reading →
What happens when newly-arrived refugees get a year-long guaranteed income? An International Institute of Minnesota pilot project is aimed at getting an answer. Intended as a bridge to a stable life in their new home, the program will direct $750 … Continue reading →
After a lengthy hiatus, the Minnesota Immigrant and Refugee Health Network is back in business. The first meeting is set for 9:30-11 am, Tuesday, October 11. Register by October 10 here. You’ll get instructions on how to join the meeting … Continue reading →
Wondered whether your health messages to refugees, migrants and immigrants are actually hitting the mark? Here’s a webinar sponsored by the National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants and Migrants where panelists will explain “cultural validation” — the practice of including … Continue reading →
With hundreds of Ukrainian refugees landing in Minnesota, here are directives on required screenings and a guide to resources from the Minnesota Department of Health. The MDH overview includes information on health screening for TB, immunizations, comprehensive health screenings, health … Continue reading →
Wondering where the latest refugees come from? The Minnesota Department of Health reports that of the 1,089 new arrivals in 2021, the overwhelming majority arrived from Afghanistan, followed by people from Congo, Somalia and Burma. The 2021 total is a … Continue reading →
What do refugees have that people in Missoula, Montana generally do not? For one thing, deep understanding of the food from their old homes. That treasure of knowledge and skill has been harnessed by a Missoula social service agency, United We Eat … Continue reading →
President Joe Biden has promised that as many as 100,000 refugees from the war in Ukraine may be resettled in the US. But when and how: those are matters that remain blurry. For a rundown on the resettlement programs and … Continue reading →
The rapidly unfolding refugee crisis in Ukraine provoked a heartbreaking and fascinating story in the New York Times recently on the practicalities of flight. If you are forced to leave your home with little chance to plan or to take … Continue reading →
Does your organization send Community Health Workers into the field? If so, here’s a pair of webinars that will give them the tools to help combat the plethora of misinformation surrounding COVID-19 vaccinations. Set for noon, Thursday, January 13 and … Continue reading →
Local Ethiopian immigrant Zinet Kemal found she had some extra time on her hands. Since moving to Minnesota nine years ago, she had earned degrees from St. Paul College and Metropolitan State University, taken a job as an IT auditor … Continue reading →
Here’s a Tip of the Week a step outside the usual — the short story, Lu, Reshaping, by Madeleine Thien, which recently appeared in the New Yorker magazine. In the broadest terms, it’s a story about a Chinese immigrant’s struggle … Continue reading →
Get a rundown on the current turmoil in Ethiopia, and its effect on the local Oromo community, via Sahan Journal, the online news source that covers immigrant and people-of-color issues. With an estimated 40,000 Oromos living in Minnesota, they are … Continue reading →
Here’s an another resource offered by the YMCA of the North for new immigrants seeking help with referrals to social services, employment, medical assistance and more. The YMCA’s New American Welcome Centers and Refugee Hubs support immigrants through integration services, … Continue reading →
For a examination of an Afghan family’s exodus to Minnesota, take a look at this detailed story just published in Sahan Journal, “The 44-day journey that changed Muhammad Nishat’s life.” (Sahan Journal describes itself as a “nonprofit digital newsroom fully … Continue reading →
Find a variety of health education pieces related to COVID for recently arrived Afghan refugees in Pashto, Dari, Farsi and English at the University of Minnesota’s National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants website. Resources include basic fact sheets, … Continue reading →
With a new wave of Afghani refugees right around the corner, here’s an opportunity to learn more about best practices when interacting with recent arrivals. The free webinar, “Best Practices in Newcomer and Immigrant Health: A Virtual Short Course for … Continue reading →
As US involvement in the 20-year war in Afghanistan winds down, here’s an inevitable question: What becomes of the thousands of Afghans who helped US troops and now face retribution as the Taliban takes over? This month the US House … Continue reading →
With the pull-out of US troops from the 20-year ware in Afghanistan comes a new international refugee crisis, as aid groups declare that they’re prepping for the displacement of tens of thousands as the Taliban takes over swaths of the … Continue reading →
The American Immigration Council is a quick and easy source for an overlook at Minnesota’s immigrant community. It’s Minnesota-specific fact sheet is available here. You’ll find some surprising information within. For example: Nine percent of state residents are immigrants; This … Continue reading →
Are safety concerns preventing your clients and patients from getting the COVID vaccination? Here’s an infographic translated into 15 languages that points out that the COVID vax is the result of years of research, and was subjected to extensive clinical … Continue reading →