Times Writers Group: Pawlenty's pals reflect his policy

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We tend to believe that the United States is the best place to live. And of all of these United States, Minnesota is the best of the best. Collectively, we want opportunity and education, quality health care and transportation systems, as well as readily available police and fire protection.



So why can’t we agree on how to pay for these things that we all use? Our Legislature last week presented the state with a two-year budget that is balanced and fair. It taxes those who can afford it the most and includes cuts to spending where possible. Our governor says he will veto this bill and cut spending according to his own whim.

This no tax policy favors the rich at the expense of the rest of the state.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty spends much of his time with the top 2.5 percent (by income) of the population of Minnesota. Is this why his tax policy favors them? Is it because his experience is different from the majority of Minnesotans?

A friend invited me to a fundraising breakfast recently put on by the Great River Interfaith Partnership. This ecumenical, faith-based group has been effecting change in the Central Minnesota for nearly a decade.

I use the word ecumenical purposefully. Much like the word Catholic, it has meaning beyond that attributed to it by Christians. Ecumenism is truly a coming together of the world, if you will, beyond our own narrow understanding of that world.

To be ecumenical is to find the universal within us, to come together in one house, under one roof.

Even though GRIP is an ecumenical group, I also was struck by an uncomfortable combination of inclusiveness, diversity and separation in the room. An ecumenical group shouldn’t be like this, should it? What gives?

The room held representatives from most of the modern religious world. There were Christians of all stripes, including Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist, Evangelicals and others. There were also those professing other beliefs. Among these were several St. Cloud-area citizens from Somalia. Most of this population is Muslim.

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In too many instances, adherents to particular religious philosophies sat with those with similar beliefs. I admit surprise. This room full of people attempting to create a world of opportunity where all citizens are cared for, educated and safe doesn’t always mix it up.



Remembering that Pawlenty, for instance, spends much of his time with leaders of the business world — the top 2.5 percent (by income) of the population of Minnesota — put this in some perspective.

This puts him in the middle of a world that believes that taxes are evil. It creates the illusion for him that the majority of Minnesotans support his perspective on taxes. So even when he fishes in the same lake as those of more modest means, he doesn’t necessarily hear their concerns about health care, education, transportation and protection.

Even though the room I was in the other day was not a model of full inclusion and togetherness, it was a model of people trying to create a better community. These were people willing to dig deep to bring about the change needed to build that community.

The people at the GRIP breakfast purposefully put themselves in a situation that helps them to see life from different perspectives. And they intently listened to story after story of those attempting to live the American dream.

One such story was told by Lul Hersi, a Somali elder. She told of the troubles of having to decide which of her children she would live with and which would live elsewhere. Our laws and the prevailing economy would not allow them to live together in affordable housing.

Pawlenty’s signing of the spending bill before him will not bring Lul Hersi’s family under one roof. It will, however, reflect the values of more Minnesotans than just the top 2.5 percent. But first he must purposefully see life from other perspectives.

This is the opinion of Ben Ament, a St. Cloud resident who hopes to leave the world slightly better than he found it. His column is published the fourth Friday of the month.

Letter: No matter what faith, more prayer is needed

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We read the May 12 letter "Suit hurts company, immigrants, freedoms" two times. It questioned whether Muslims should have paid time during work to pray. The letter offered some good ideas.



We, a Catholic and a Muslim, thank its author, who noted he came to this country and worked hard, enriching our culture with good German values.

We are glad he learned our language. We also speak a second language, Spanish and Somali, and know it helps us to understand other cultures.

We agree about the separation of church and state. We assume one would want the two institutions to help each other.

The letter questioned whether it is OK that Muslims pray during work on paid time. It is our experience that prayerful people seem to get more work done. Actually, we think we need more prayer, not only in the factory, but on the road, in the offices and in places of recreation, too.

The letter expressed displeasure about not putting up Christmas scenes by the post office. We support that view. Our culture is materialistic. We think we need more religious symbols — like Christmas scenes, the Ten Commandments, the cross, the crescent moon — in private and public places. We need all the help we can get!

Living in a culture that is pulling away from faith — and moving toward war, abortion and consumerism — we should not ask those who pray, "Why?" But rather those who don't, "Why not?"

Finally, that letter closed with "Immigrants must change and become proud Americans." We would state that immigrants and Americans must change and become faithful citizens.

Is that not what our country was founded on? Faith, hope and love — whether you are Christian, Jew, Muslim, etc.

Somali women celebrate connections through association

By Lawrence Schumacher • lschumacher@stcloudtimes.com • April 23, 2009

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Somali women are finding their voice in the St. Cloud area, and Wednesday they shared it with the community.



About 75 people of different races, ethnicities and religions came to St. Cloud's Whitney Senior Center on Wednesday to celebrate the birth of the St. Cloud Area Somali Women's Association, a group organized by Somali women including Fartun Hussein, a community health care worker and the group's executive director.

"Many of us have been waiting for an opportunity to have an organization where we feel welcomed, understood and respected," Hussein told the group at the open house meeting. "Our mission is to bring Somali women and girls together in a positive way."

Somali women are seeking to build connections to other women's organizations in the St. Cloud area and strengthen their voice within the Somali community, Hussein said.

The group began organizing last month and will focus on building opportunities for education and employment, eliminating violence against women and children, and building relationships and promoting leadership among Somali women, she said.

Known as SASWA, the group already has lined up a long list of support from community organizations, and St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis was on hand to congratulate them on their efforts.

"Folks need to get to know their neighbors as a community," he said. "I think that is so very important, and I'm glad that groups like SASWA are working to build connections."

When he was organizing the St. Cloud Area Somali Salvation Organization almost a decade ago, Mohamoud Mohamed said he encouraged the creation of a support group for Somali women.

"It's something we've been missing in the last nine years we've been here," he said. "SASWA will connect refugee women to the greater women's community organizations in the area."

There are Somali women's support groups in the Twin Cities, but this is the first of its kind in Central Minnesota, Hussein said.

There have been some roadblocks along the way, but the group has received tremendous support both from Somali women and from the larger St. Cloud community, she said.

The group has the support and encouragement of Create CommUNITY, said Hedy Tripp, the group's coordinator.

"We will share with you all the tools we have," she said. "But it is your organization and your hard work that will make this group a success."

The group is raising money within the Somali community, securing organizational support and relying on a lot of volunteer efforts, Hussein said.

It is registered as a nonprofit with the state of Minnesota and is pursuing tax-exempt 501(c)3 status, she said.

Somali residents fight pirate stereotypes

By Kirsti Marohn • kmarohn@stcloudtimes.com • April 23, 2009

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It happened half a world away, but a recent pirate attack on an American ship hit close to home for natives of Somalia living in St. Cloud.



Along with the rest of the country, they watched the drama unfold in the news as the Somali pirates held the captain hostage until U.S. Navy snipers shot and killed three pirates.

Like most Americans, they were horrified by the attack and pleased to hear of the rescue of Capt. Richard Phillips.

But they worry that not everyone understands the difference between law-abiding natives of Somalia living in the United States and outlaws causing terror on the high seas. They fear the incident might cause a backlash against all Somalis.

"Not all Somali people are bad people," Lul Hersi said. "We have bad people in every country ... They don't represent us at all. They're the minority."

Hersi and several other Somali elders gathered this week to discuss the event with the hope of educating other St. Cloud residents to recognize the distinction.

"We ran from those thugs. We ran from those pirates. We ran from that war," Hersi said.

"We want the American people to know we ran away from that. That's why we are here. We don't support anything that goes wrong in Somalia. That's not what we stand for. We stand for safety. We stand for peace."

No hope

It's been difficult for Somalis living in St. Cloud to watch the destruction of their native country of 8 million people, which disintegrated in 1991 when warlords toppled the president. Since then, Somalia has been ruled by heavily armed rival clans and has struggled with famine and violence.

Somalia's instability and poverty are the root causes of the piracy evidenced last week, St. Cloud Somali residents said.

"Until they have stability in that area, nothing will ever change," said Hani Jacobson, a student at St. Cloud Technical College. "Those people are hungry. They are tired of war. They are poor. The whole country's just pretty much to the ground. And until the world gets together and helps those people, these things are not going to change."

Forum addresses religion in news

Forum addresses religion in news
Times staff report • March 30, 2009

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University of Washington Professor David Domke will speak about how religion has changed the news at the 37th annual First Amendment Forum Friday at St. Cloud State University.



Domke has written two books about religion in American politics. He will speak at 9 a.m. in Atwood Memorial Center Theatre on campus.

After Domke’s talk, a panel of reporters will discuss news and religious issues they have covered, and several religious leaders will offer their reactions.

Domke wrote “The God Strategy: How Religion Became a Weapon in American Politics” and “God Willing? Political Fundamentalism in the White House, the ‘War on Terror,’ and the Echoing Press.”

Media panelists will be Allie Shah, a reporter at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis who is Muslim and has won awards for her cultural sensitivity in reporting; Ambar Espinoza, a Minnesota Public Radio reporter based in Collegeville who covers Latino and Muslim communities; David Unze, St. Cloud Times reporter who covered both the pedophile priest scandal and the St. Cloud State Oratorio tour to Holocaust sites in France and Germany last summer.

Religious representatives will be Joseph A. Edelheit, St. Cloud State professor of religious and Jewish studies who has been a rabbi for 35 years and has organized a variety of interfaith conversations; and Hassan Mohamud, an imam, lawyer and professor of law and Islamic studies who has been critical of the Twin Cities media coverage of Muslim issues, including the disappearance of young Somali men in Minneapolis.

A second panel at 1:15 p.m. will involve people who specialize in coverage of communities of faith.

Panelists are Julia Opoti, editor of Msale — The African Community Newspaper of Minnesota; Mordecai Specktor, editor and publisher of the American Jewish World and Joe Towalski, editor of The Catholic Spirit of St. Paul and The Visitor of St. Cloud; and Diana and Dawn Madsen, twin sisters who host the Morning Show on Spirit 92.9.

Gym gives Somali girls own court time

Gym gives Somali girls own court time
The Associated Press • March 29, 2009

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MINNEAPOLIS — Nearly every day, Somali boys and young men gather at the Brian Coyle Center in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood to shoot hoops in the gym.



But there are times when the boys are locked out — and the gym is set aside just for the girls.

In a single-sex environment, the high school students and young women can learn basketball, cut loose a little, and they don’t need to wear scarves and long skirts for religious modesty.

Fatimah Hussein, who works for the Confederation of Somali Community in Minnesota, said the boys were having fun playing basketball every day, and she wanted to start something for the girls.

Melpomene, a St. Paul nonprofit group devoted to women’s health, helped round up balls, scrimmage jerseys and two interns to teach the rules.

Hussein started Sunday afternoon sessions, and recently added Wednesday nights. She said it’s been an adjustment — for the boys.

“They usually have the gym every day and they’re like, ‘You guys have weekends, now you want the gym weekdays?’ ” Hussein said. She responded, “ ‘We have the same bodies as you guys. You guys have fun and we want to have the same.’ ”

There have been newcomers every week. And the young women say they are having fun. There’s lots of shooting and cheering, and while the door is propped open for latecomers, Hussein said it’s private enough that the women can relax.

“The thing that really got me was the fact there were no guys. And it’s really hard to find that,” said Sheenah Abdulle, a senior at Edison High School in Minneapolis. “You try to go places and there’s always guys there. And with our religion and our customs, you can’t; it doesn’t allow that.”

She said her co-ed gym class at her high school was uncomfortable. She couldn’t wear the required gym clothes of pants and a shirt.

“I couldn’t do that because of my religion, so I got docked points. And then I had to run around and I can’t run around with guys, so then I got docked points. I mean it’s a luck that I passed the class!” she said.

Other players said they reached compromises in school gym class, like wearing modest clothing on top of gym clothes. But ideally, they said, separate classes are better.
Hussein calls her group “a sister’s club,” where the girls can focus on the game.



Jo Ann Buysse, a Melpomene volunteer, is one cheerleader. She used to coach college women’s basketball and now directs the undergraduate Sports Management Program at the University of Minnesota. On a recent Sunday, she shouted encouragement from the sidelines, and worked with the women on zone defense.

“It’s really fun to see them have so much fun, even if they’re not playing according to all the rules,” Buysse said. “But they’re learning and they’re improving every week and they enjoy their time together, and it’s about getting girls physically active.”

Recently, Buysse showed Hussein an old pool at the Un iversity of Minnesota where women might be able to swim privately. She’s eager to help Hussein expand athletic opportunities for Muslim women.

For now, the women are coming from all over the city to play basketball.

Hussein said they have begun leaving their athletic shoes under Hussein’s desk — ready for the next time they come to play.

Bill Would Ban Headwear On Driver's License Photos

WCCO.COM
Tuesday, March 03, 2009


Most people don't like their driver's license picture, but if a state lawmaker has his way, one group of Minnesotans said they are going to like theirs even less. State Rep. Steve Gottwalt of St. Cloud is trying to pass a bill that would ban any kind of headwear worn on a driver's license pictures.

Gottwalt said it is a matter of safety to help law enforcement identify people easier. However, people in the Muslim community said covering their heads is their religious right.

"We cover our hair for that reason. We follow our religion -- what God told us to do," said Suban Khalif.

Khalif and Hindia Ali are Muslim women. As part of their faith, they wear a head scarf nearly 24 hours a day. To take it off, for even a few minutes, is a big deal. That is why the women are so opposed to Gottwalt's bill. They think their faces are enough to identify them.

"Daily, I cover my hair. And I don't think I need to show my hair on a driver's license. It just doesn't make sense to me at all," said Khalif.

"My facial expressions, my face, my nose, my eyes should be clearly enough for any person to tell us apart," Ali agreed.

The Muslim community points out that Jews, Christians and other religions would also be affected if the bill passed.

"There's no logic behind the bill, so we want to know really what is the motivation behind the bill," said Aman Obsiye of the United Somali Movement.

"It's really not about religion at all. It's about public safety," said Gottwalt.

Gottwalt said the motivation for this bill came from law enforcement. He said it is not about singling anyone out, it is about keeping headwear off everyone's driver's license picture in order to make it fair, and to make it easier for police.

"We've heard law enforcement people tell us about gangbangers wearing their hats differently and those kinds of things that kind of get in the way of quickly identifying who this person is," said Gottwalt.

His supporters agree.


State Rep. Steve Gottwalt said ban any kind of headwear on a driver's license is a matter of safety to help law enforcement identify people easier. However, people in the Muslim community said covering their heads is their religious right. CBS
"People identify individuals more than just the eyes, and the nose, and the mouth and the front face. They look at the hair, and the ears, and the sideburns and other features of the head," said Sgt. Jason Burke of the St. Cloud Police Department.

Gottwalt's bill allows for some exceptions. If a person has a deformity or a medial condition that requires headwear, then they can wear it for their driver's license picture. Gottwalt said he is hoping to get a committee hearing for the bill soon. The state of Alabama is considering similar legislation.

Airline security entrances have seen changes regarding headwear. Just a couple of years ago the Transportation Security Administration changed its rules. It used to be anyone wearing a head covering had to go through security twice. Now, it is up to the screener if they think more than one pass is necessary.

Seventh annual Gather the Women event brings together all ages

ST. JOSEPH — Every woman has a story to tell.



At the seventh annual Gather the Women celebration at the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, they can share their stories to better understand themselves and one another.

“It is through the sharing of stories that barriers have a tendency of coming down, or at least lessen, and people can talk to each other more on a one-on-one basis,” Sue Smith-Grier said.

Smith-Grier, a Minneapolis storyteller, will be featured at the free event March 21 with her portrayal of Harriet Tubman’s role in the Underground Railroad, bringing slaves to the North.

“It’s a story of hardship, difficult times and slavery, and coming into freedom — a journey of gathering inner strength to overcome obstacles and helping people along the way,” she said.

Power

Gather the Women is a global organization honoring International Women’s Day that awakens and celebrates the collective power of women, according to organizers.

“When we get together, we are providing self-sufficiency to women, so in the future they can be new leaders in the community,” said Brianda Cediel, executive director and co-founder of Hands Across the World, a resource for immigrants and refugees in Central Minnesota.

Cediel is a co-organizer of the Gather the Women celebration in St. Joseph, which is the largest in the nation. Her mother hails from Colombia and her father is of Italian descent.

“For me, the most exciting thing about Gather the Women is it’s an opportunity for women from various cultures to get to know one another,” said Linda Hutchinson, a co-organizer of the event.

Omeka! program brings cultures together

This is a woman's world. At least it is during Omeka!



It is a world where guests greet each other with a hug and a smile. It is a world where the welcoming feeling is immediate when these African and African-American women walk into a hostess' home on a Sunday.

As Central Minnesota has become increasingly diverse, programs have risen to help newcomers adapt to the nuances of American culture. But fewer opportunities have existed for social interaction between cultures.

With monthly gatherings in local homes, Omeka!, launched in November, is making those connections for African and African-American women in Central Minnesota.

"Omeka!" is a Swahili word meaning to display; to speak out; to spread out.

In an atmosphere complete with food, music and storytelling, the women share their journeys, cultures and ideas, and they learn from one another.

Debra Leigh, an Omeka! organizer and professor at St. Cloud State University, recognized the division that was developing between African and African-American women in the St. Cloud area. Working with Sister Chrispina Lekule, a student at St. Cloud State University, she traveled to Zanzibar, Tanzania and began researching resources for African women in terms of survival skills, leadership skills and building community.

"We wanted to see what it takes for women to succeed," Leigh said.

Lekule said they also visited different women's groups to see what they were doing to empower themselves economically. Their findings, coupled with the observed cultural division in St. Cloud, led to Omeka!

Store becomes gathering place

By Britt Johnsen • bljohnsen@stcloudtimes.com • January 28, 2009

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Buzz up! A new group of stores in St. Cloud isn't just a place to buy rice, lamb and spices. It's a community hub where people gather to talk with each other, eat lunch at a deli and watch television.


Mogadishu Meat & Grocery Store opened earlier this month at 1725 Seventh St. S. The former gas station is now a cluster of commerce. You can buy groceries such as Italian cookies, spices used for East African and Middle Eastern dishes, and rice. You can buy clothes, rugs, perfume and audio CDs with readings from the Quran. And you can eat lunch at a restaurant inside the store.

Stop by on any given day and you'll find cars in many of the parking lot's spaces. Chatter can be heard throughout the store, by the cash register, in the aisles by the cookies and juice, and over coffee and food in front of a television. The deli offers such meals as catfish with fries and pasta with goat meat.

Owner Tohow Siyad says the store has become a community gathering place. Students sometimes come by on Sundays to watch sports on TV, and some customers come just to eat meals at the deli.

It's a good place for people to come together, he says.

Siyad owns other grocery stores, including St. Cloud Meat & Grocery Store, as well as a store in Minneapolis called Macca Meat & Grocery. He recently moved to St. Cloud.

The economy is tough on many businesses — he said he is breaking even right now, not losing money but not making money, either. And the Somali population — one segment of its shoppers — has been hit with unemployment as manufacturers that employ Somali immigrants have laid off employees to cope with the recession.

But the demand for the products Siyad offers is still there.

This is the fifth East African grocery store to open in St. Cloud, said Mohamoud Mohamed, director of the St. Cloud Area Somali Salvation Organization. The fact that a fifth store can open and survive says something about the demand for their products and services. It also shows that the Somali community, despite the effects of layoffs, is still thriving in St. Cloud.

"The people are settling and have a sense of establishing themselves," Mohamed said.

Even though many of the store's customers are East African, it welcomes all shoppers. Siyad says his store sees every ethnicity, from Asian to Caucasian to African.

"They eat. They buy something. That's what they need," he said.

‘I Am Somalia’ event to highlight culture

‘I Am Somalia’ event to highlight culture
Times staff report • January 22, 2009

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Buzz up! A celebration of Somali culture will begin at 6 p.m. Saturday in the Atwood Ballroom on the campus of St. Cloud State University.


“I Am Somalia” will include performances, poetry, a fashion show, traditional cuisine and other activities showcasing Somali culture. It is sponsored by St. Cloud State University and the Somali Student Association.

The cost is $7 for students and $10 for faculty and community members.

For details, contact student association at somali@stcloudstate.edu.

Man arrested after assault, threats

e arrested a St. Cloud man Thursday morning in connection with a report of a domestic assault.


Police were called at 1:12 a.m. to the 600 block of 14th Street South. A man struck the mother of his child several times in the back and neck and choked her, police said.

He threatened to kill the woman and pulled the phone cord from the wall when she grabbed the phone, the report said. Hussein Hassan Farah, 23, was taken to Stearns County Jail. The 25-year-old victim sustained minor injuries.