Native American Somali Friendship Committee
InCommons Collaboration Challenge
Native American Somali Friendship Committee
Since the early nineties thousands of Somali refugees have settled in the Twin Cities, escaping a brutal civil war. These communities arrived directly from refugee camps or in secondary migrations from other U.S cities, drawn by an attractive urban job market and refugee service agencies.
Increasingly, conflicts arose between Somali immigrant youth and Native American youth. Recently these conflicts have included assaults and rapes. In January, a conflict with potentially disastrous consequences arose between youth of the Native American community and Somali youth in the Phillips Neighborhood in Minneapolis.
The Native American Somali Friendship Committee was formed when Wade Keezer, an Ojibwe leader and organizer, called the Native American and Somali communities to begin a cross cultural dialogue to promote greater understanding and peaceful community building, and address the growing tension. Peacemaking is a process based on traditional methods of dispute resolution which is a cornerstone of Native American culture. It is not a law but rather a system that addresses the need to rebuild relationships between people.
The committee officially started its work when Amina Saleh, a Somali community organizer at The Family Partnership, worked with Wade and other Native American leaders to bring a small cross-cultural group together on Martin Luther King Day to get to know each other’s similarities and differences, and to discuss how to begin to put their minds and hearts together in an effort to make their communities safer through collaboration.
This entry has been selected as a finalist in the
InCommons Collaboration Challenge competition.
About You
About You
First Name
Amina
Last Name
Saleh
Country
United States, MN, Hennepin County
About Your Organization
Organization
The Family Partnership
Organization Website
Organization Phone
612-729-0340
Organization Address
4123 East Lake Street, Minneapolis, MN 55406
Organization Country
United States, MN, Hennepin County
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Your Story
Collaboration Title
Native American Somali Friendship Committee
Country your work focuses on
United States, MN, Hennepin County
Describe your locally-based collaboration and the problem it sought to address
Since the early nineties thousands of Somali refugees have settled in the Twin Cities, escaping a brutal civil war. These communities arrived directly from refugee camps or in secondary migrations from other U.S cities, drawn by an attractive urban job market and refugee service agencies.
Increasingly, conflicts arose between Somali immigrant youth and Native American youth. Recently these conflicts have included assaults and rapes. In January, a conflict with potentially disastrous consequences arose between youth of the Native American community and Somali youth in the Phillips Neighborhood in Minneapolis.
The Native American Somali Friendship Committee was formed when Wade Keezer, an Ojibwe leader and organizer, called the Native American and Somali communities to begin a cross cultural dialogue to promote greater understanding and peaceful community building, and address the growing tension. Peacemaking is a process based on traditional methods of dispute resolution which is a cornerstone of Native American culture. It is not a law but rather a system that addresses the need to rebuild relationships between people.
The committee officially started its work when Amina Saleh, a Somali community organizer at The Family Partnership, worked with Wade and other Native American leaders to bring a small cross-cultural group together on Martin Luther King Day to get to know each other’s similarities and differences, and to discuss how to begin to put their minds and hearts together in an effort to make their communities safer through collaboration.
Tell us about the community in which this collaboration took place
The collaboration took place at the American Indian Center in the Phillips Neighborhood of Minneapolis, one of the oldest Indian centers in the country, and at the Brian Coyle Community Center in the Cedar Riverside Neighborhood, the heart of the Minneapolis Somali community, alternately. The first meeting of the committee was held at a neutral location, and then moved to these centers.
Issue Selector
n/a
Partnership
Who was involved in co-creating or implementing your collaboration (other organizations, leaders, community members, etc.)?
Community elders and other community members, youth from the two communities, the Confederation of Somali Community in Minnesota, the Division of Indian Work, and the Community Liaison from Area B Schools are the people and organizations who were involved in implementing the collaboration between the two communities.
To what extent does your collaboration involve partnerships that are outside or cross traditional organizational or sector boundaries?
The Native American Somali Friendship Committee represents the first time that Native American and Somali organizations and leaders have come together to create peaceful solutions to conflicts between their two communities.
Innovation
What makes your locally-based collaboration innovative and unique?
Beyond the fact that this collaboration brings together two communities that have historically not worked in partnership, the Native American Somali Friendship Committee is unique in that it is using traditional dispute resolution methods to resolve conflicts between those who have been here the longest, and those who are the newest arrivals.
Did you take risks in establishing this collaboration? Explain
There were great risks involved in bringing the Native American Somali Friendship Committee together. At a time of great tension and distrust between the two communities, it was difficult to know what would happen when they met face to face to discuss the issues. It was entirely possible that existing conflicts and divisions would actually deepen when all concerns were aired publicly.
How did this collaboration differ from the normal way of doing your work?
Many times, community organizing work is based on the principle of creating tension and conflict. This deliberate “agitation” is often what drives community change. The dispute settlement mechanism adopted by the Native American Somali Friendship Committee was, instead, based on traditional methods of community conflict resolution that were valued by both communities.
Impact
How do you know your collaboration has been effective?
We know this collaboration has been effective because these communities, which were previously locked in conflict, have continued to have regular discussions and meetings. They have moved from an agitated state to one that values the amicable settlement of disputes.
After learning about each other’s cultures, Native American Somali Friendship Committee members found that they had a lot in common. In particular, they found that both communities had tremendous respect for their elders, and both were committed to solving problems through discussion and dialogue.
What progress or impact has been made?
In addition to dialogues and meetings, the Native American Somali Friendship Committee organized a safety walk through the Cedar Riverside Neighborhood and down Franklin Ave, in which Somali and Native American elders walked side by side in a public showing of peace/unity. The committee organized open gym times, where Somali and Native youth play sports together and get to know each other.
Next Steps
How would you go about continuing, expanding, or replicating this collaboration?
First of all, we need to take the time to document the progress we have made since the beginning of the collaboration. Since both communities involved come from such strong storytelling traditions, it is important that we tell this story in meaningful ways that honor those who have taken the risk to be involved. Storytelling can take different forms, but we would anticipate the project can help support participants to create oral programs, performances, videos, art, or other ways to tell this story of change and how unity and better understanding has come about and can be continued.
With the proper resources, we could provide many more opportunities for the youth to get together in safe, cross-cultural activities and spaces. Also, to create more opportunities for elders and young members to come together for sharing, learning, and transmitting community norms of peace, collaboration, and common interests. We could also bring the dialogues to many more parts of the community and organize more public unity activities like the safety walk.
Describe the current stage of implementation and desired next steps
The current stage of implementation, as described above, has been all about de-escalating conflict and establishing trust between the Native American and Somali communities. Through dialogues, public actions, and youth activities, we have laid the foundation for the next phase of our development, which involves deepening relationships and defining the scope and reach of our work. Based on conversations with Native American and Somali elders and youth, the following next steps have been identified:
• Building skills of committee participants through cross-cultural leadership training sessions
• Expanding opportunities for youth to get to know each other through sports and other activities
• Continuing cross-cultural dialogues with youth and elders
• Writing a mission and vision for the Native American Somali Friendship Committee
| 111 weeks ago Dave Peters said: You can find an MPR News report about this effort here -- ... about this Competition Entry. - read more > | |
| 127 weeks ago carol wichers said: Wouldn't it be wonderful if this model spread out to all groups, including Caucasians...we all need to understand each other better..I ... about this Competition Entry. - read more > | |
| 127 weeks ago Bonnie Blodgett said: Wonderful video and inspiring work. You all should be so proud. about this Competition Entry. - read more > | |
| 128 weeks ago Aaron Wahlstrom said: The video is wonderfully moving. You can see the heart, passion, and dedication to this program in all of the participants faces. What ... about this Competition Entry. - read more > | |
| 128 weeks ago Axmed Cabdi said: Quite moving and exemplry work! I hope you win the challenge. about this Competition Entry. - read more > | |
| 129 weeks ago Jenny Skorupa said: I'm very impressed by the work you are doing. We all have the power to make our communities the places we want them to be. Thank you ... about this Competition Entry. - read more > | |
| 133 weeks ago Amina Saleh updated this Competition Entry. | |
| 133 weeks ago Amina Saleh submitted this idea. |
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