Somalis, Shelbyville and Severe Culture Shock

An Interview with Brian Mosely

by Jerry Gordon (Feb. 2008)

Shelbyville, Tennessee is a rural community located in the middle part of the state. Four years ago, the character of this community was changed irrevocably when a major employer, Tyson Foods, hired several hundred Somali émigrés to replace illegal Hispanic meat packers at a facility there. The Somalis emigrated from other centers in the heartland of the US, after coming to America under a legal humanitarian immigration program established by the 1980 Refugee Act, controlled by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and by the US State Department Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration with a budget of over $1 billion. In 2007, there were an estimated 70,000 plus Somali legal immigrants in the US. Major centers of Somali émigrés include, Minneapolis, Minnesota and Columbus, Ohio. This was facilitated in the 1990’s when the Clinton Administration, through the US Office of Refugee Resettlement, decided to vector Somalis and other humanitarian refugees away from major coastal cities and into the interior of the American heartland.

Major employers who require low skilled workers, like Tyson, took advantage of these changes. Tyson was prodded by Federal criminal cases brought against it by the US Department of Justice for hiring illegal aliens. The hiring of legal Somali immigrants was facilitated by Federal cash stipends and social assistance administered by state social services agencies with the contractual assistance of voluntary agencies like Catholic Charities, Lutheran Relief, Church World Services and others. Hence the presence of Somalis in Shelbyville, Tennessee.

Nashville, Minneapolis, Lewiston, Maine and another Tyson Foods locale, Emporia, Kansas with a Somali meatpacker work force. The problems in those communities have included issues such as TB, public health, drug dealing, petty crime, in some cases massive unemployment, federal Medicare and Medicaid fraud and separation of Church and State provisions.

US, is Brian Mosely of the Shelbyville Times Gazette.

In this interview with Mosely, we discuss the background that led to the Times Gazette Somali series, the reaction of the community to his reports and opinion pieces, comments by readers, and the attempt to muzzle his free speech rights under our Constitution. The Somali series that Mosely has produced will be submitted for some Tennessee and possibly AP press awards. That is in the best tradition of American journalism. Mosely, his editor and publisher are to be commended for their efforts to keep us better informed and alert to issues that need national attention and reform.

Brian Mosely, we are pleased that you could join us for this interview.

Tell us about your own background as a working journalist on a small town newspaper?

Tennessee all my life. My first job out of high school was working in the press room of our local paper. During that time, I attended Motlow State Community College and Middle Tennessee State University majoring in Mass Communication. I began working with local news media in the mid 1990’s, and writing for various newspapers in the region following that.

That is an interesting question. Catholic Charities of Tennessee handles the resettlement of Somalis in Nashville, but no local official in Bedford County could tell me with any certainty when the refugees began arriving in this small community. According to figures we received from the Tennessee Department of Human Services (DHS), just a total of 13 refugees have directly settled in Bedford County from Somalia — only two in 2005-06 and 11 in 2006-07. But these figures do not include secondary migrants, which are refugees who have relocated to Shelbyville after first settling somewhere else. DHS apparently does not have a mechanism in place to track such secondary migration and therefore, no one has a clear idea when they first came here. The Somalis could be resettling from the Nashville area, or from elsewhere, but we have no sure way of knowing.

US?

As from where they are migrating, that is another mystery in itself. We had assumed that many Somalis had relocated from Nashville, where a large number of refugees from different countries are being resettled, but one of my sources tells me that a great many of the Somalis came from Ohio. One problem in tracking where the refugees originated is that after they have been resettled in our country, following a short period of time, they are apparently free to go wherever they please.

Nashville, primarily, and from there, people move around and don’t always let us know where they are, nor do they need to.”  She also said that Somalis are a transient population. That’s not to say that they move around constantly, but let’s just say that they are not afraid of change, we were told.

As Tyson figures prominently in the introduction of Somalis to Shelbyville, would you tell us what motivated the company to bring them to the community?

In 2001, the Tyson plant here in Shelbyville was one of several across the country that were caught up in a federal investigation alleging that executives and managers of Tyson were involved in a conspiracy to smuggle illegal aliens to their foods processing facilities.

Two local managers pled guilty, one took his own life and the rest were acquitted in federal court when the case finally came to trial. But it was soon after the Tyson trial that locals began to notice the Somalis moving into the area. Many living here, including some employed at the plant, have claimed that the company was replacing the Hispanics with Somalis, since they can guarantee they are in the country legally.

According to Tyson representatives, the case-ready meats plant in Goodlettsville, TN [near Nashville] had finished staffing their second shift and began telling applicants of other job opportunities in the company, which included positions here in Shelbyville. Tyson claims that the Somalis applied for employment through one of the area Job Service offices and learned about the jobs primarily through word-of-mouth.

Also, the head of Catholic Charities claims that while many employers contact them when they have openings for refugees, Tyson is not typically one of those.

Tennessee and voluntary agencies have been involved with the resettlement and provision of social services to Somalis in Shelbyville and what, in your opinion, has been their effectiveness in handling the community absorption problems?

Nashville, they are pretty much on their own. When the Somalis are first brought to America, Catholic Charities would be provided with $425 for each person that they resettle by the State Department.

Nashville. However, as far as providing any support or services in Shelbyville, that simply has not happened here at all. The community has just had to deal with the many challenges on their own. For example, the county school system is having a hard time finding translators for the Somalis. They were given no notification that the refugees were coming.

noted the difficulties that both the Somalis and the local community have experienced. Could you give us some examples?

Given that this area of Tennessee is known for their southern hospitality, the behavior of the Somalis has really angered many people in the community, even those who would typically welcome people from other cultures. But what is really infuriating many residents are that the groups who bring the Somalis into the country appear to expect the local community to practice the same type of moral and cultural relativism they do.

Rome…’ from the public, although many others have been quite a bit more direct about expressing their feelings.

America’ and blowing themselves up. Suddenly, they are in line with grandma at Wal-Mart. The Somalis began to move to this area just a short time after 9/11 and the release of the DVD of ‘Black Hawk Down,’ which doesn’t exactly portray them in a favorable light. As a result, there is a tremendous amount of fear in some parts of the community due to this perception. I have also heard many opinions of disgust and disbelief that our own government would let these people in here. Anger from members of the public over the issue of illegal immigration is already high in this community and the introduction of the Somalis has only made these feelings much worse.

Also, the Somalis have “unrealistic expectations” of what the school system provides. Apparently, someone had told the refugees that the schools furnish free child care and when the Somalis learned that wasn’t the case, they become very aggressive and demanding, insisting that the school system provide it.

America and we expect them to follow American rules and American laws and educational laws as well.”

What has caused many of these problems is the apparent total lack of communication between the locals and the refugee community. As I said before, to our knowledge, there have been no official contacts between city or county government and the Somalis. This lack of interaction has resulted in the Somalis isolating themselves and being further alienated from their neighbors. The groups that helped them get resettled in this country are nowhere to be found. Had the Somalis stayed in Nashville, this might be otherwise, but there has been no evidence of their assistance here.

Soon after our story about the visit from the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) was published, this official used the information we provided to contact the Somali Community Center of Nashville to see if they could give the county a phone number or other contact information for the Imam. County officials tell me they want the doors of communication opened. Amazingly enough, the Somali Community Center of Nashville refused to do so, but stated that they would act as a go-between with county government and the Muslim community. However, there has been no other contact between the two parties at all. The official I spoke to seemed quite frustrated and said they have not returned his calls. He also stated that it appeared the Somalis wanted no contact or interaction with the rest of the community.

articles in the Somali series you discussed the plight of Bantus, a slave minority population in Somalia, considered by the UNHCR and our State Department as ‘extremely vulnerable persons’. Do they constitute a significant majority of Somalis in Shelbyville? Why did you focus on the Bantus? Was there any evidence of possible immigration fraud by local Somalis using the Bantu designation?

Nashville are from that tribe. But since nearly all that have come to Shelbyville are secondary migrants from different part of the nation, there is no way for us to tell who is from what group. As we were told by DHS, there is no tracking mechanism in place for the Somalis once they move from their original resettlement areas. Some may settle here and then move on, only to be replaced by other refugees. We have no idea how many moved here from Nashville or Ohio. And since there has been little to no contact with the Somali community, there has been no way for us to tell if there has been any fraud or misrepresentation in their introduction to America.

Emporia, Kansas, another Tyson Foods community with a significant Somali work force, they experienced an outbreak of latent TB with one death and hundreds of cases screened positive. Has anything comparable occurred in Shelbyville?

The Tyson spokesman said that they require all newly hired workers to complete a post-offer health assessment, made up of a health history questionnaire that asks them about their medical background, including whether they have TB or been tested for the disease. Depending on their responses, the new workers are sometimes referred to a local medical provider or the county health department. Also, a spokesperson for the Tennessee Department of Health said the rate of communicable illness here are no higher than in other areas of the state, also claiming that refugees entering the country are screened by health care professionals and the local offices are notified if there is a problem with anyone in the area.

Because Somalis come from both a strong tribal and Muslim background, they practice female genital mutilation (FGM). Have you found any evidence of such practices, barred by US law, in the Shelbyville community?

You have noted alleged drug dealing in Khat, a US DEA Class I drug, and attendant gang problems cited by local law enforcement officials. Could you tell us about these and what the experiences of law enforcement officials have been?

Nashville, where about 5,000 have been settled by the State Department. Shelbyville police have also told us that many citizens are reporting suspicious activity in regards to the Somalis. Just today, I was told that law enforcement is keeping a close eye on the refugees.

Lewiston, Maine and Emporia, Kansas, and major Somali émigré centers in the US such as Minneapolis and Columbus?

Lewiston, Emporia and the larger cities, there are the advocacy groups, community centers and other organizations, such as those established in Nashville, to help the refugees. But no such group exists here to do that at all. Aside from the visit from the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, no one else has contacted us wanting to help the Somalis. I understand that one of our churches is attempting to start some sort of dialog with the refugees, but given the enormous differences in faith and culture, I am not very optimistic this will succeed.

Emporia, Kansas plant prayer facilities and wudus, or ritual foot baths, are provided. Could you tell us about your reception by the local Imam and whether Tyson’s Shelbyville plant has accommodated the strict Islamic Sharia beliefs of the local Somali Community?

You have been visited by a delegation from the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) following the publication of your Somali series. In a recent Op Ed you noted that they should have appeared on the scene ‘four years ago’ to assist in the absorption process. What is it that you think these immigrant advocacy groups and others in Tennessee can and should be doing to help out?

Bedford County schools already had a large number of English as Second Language [ESL] instructors due to the large amount of Hispanic children in the system, they were somewhat ready for the refugees. However many counties in our region are not and if they moved to another county, their school systems would have serious problems educating the refugee children.

In an Op Ed at the conclusion of the Somali series, you expressed the view that the Somalis have been ungrateful for local community assistance. What is this based on? Can anything be done to change the Somali attitude?

America before they are allowed to enter our society. Moral and cultural relativism are no excuse for some of the stories we have been told. Just because something is allowed in their land does not make it permissible in the rural South.

Given your Somali series and knowledge about absorption difficulties of Somalis and other humanitarian refugee problems in the US, do you have suggestions about what Congress and the Administration might do to reform the situation?

Bringing tens of thousands of third world refugees into this country without the proper social and cultural preparation along with a lengthy adjustment period is, in my view, flat out immoral.

America. In the 1970’s, our church brought in a family of Vietnamese ‘boat people.’ My family even hosted an Ethiopian family in our home from a similar type of refugee situation that the Somalis came from. Helping the refugees adapt family by family seemed to work out quite well. In my view, the practice of bringing large masses of lost souls here in order to fill federal quotas and allowing them to freely roam about the country with little means of supporting themselves and no idea how to function in modern society is not the way to help them. Refugee resettlement appears to have become more of a business than anything else, in my opinion.

Approximately, how many comments have you received on the Somali series and how varied have they been?

Unfortunately, we still have some bigots in the area and their hateful screeds were made part of the comments on our website. We banned one fellow for constantly posting links to Klan websites. We then began to get many messages from outside the community, some from Great Britain and other places from Muslims who called Shelbyville bigoted and unwelcoming. This started a lot of back and forth discussion between locals and those who live elsewhere.

However, out of the hundreds of comments and e-mails received about the Somali series, very few, if any, took issue with the actual facts we presented. Instead, I took a lot of criticism from people who feel I do not have the right to express an opinion on matters I report on.

Festival of Ashura, where many Muslims flagellate themselves with chains and blades and even slice up the foreheads of pre-schoolers as part of the religious event.

“Funding Evil”. Her book was about Middle East terror financiers. She has been in a swirl of Federal and State of New York Appeals Court cases defending her against ‘tourist libel’ actions brought in London law courts by wealthy Saudi businessman Khaled bin Mahfouz. What motivated you to write the opinion piece?

Brian Mosely thank you for responding to this interview. Best of luck on your submissions in both the Tennessee Press Association and AP awards competition.

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