Welcome Center/Faribault Diversity Coalition Update 2008

A new year has begun and with it some new projects within the Diversity Coalition. We would like to update you on what is “on the stove”…

ESL Classes: Interest from within the Sharing Circles this fall led to the development of volunteer-taught ESL classes that began during January at the Welcome Center. Morning and evening classes are being offered and so far 18 students have been participating. We welcome volunteers who would be willing to make a 6-week commitment to help team teach. A lot of support is available! Please contact the Welcome Center (333-5036).

Food Coop: A group of families have formed a food cooperative through the Welcome Center. They purchase food once monthly at bulk prices and share the work of repackaging, buying the reduced-price food at cost. Items include rice, sugar, beans, flour, pasta, and oil. Others are most welcome to join and help expand the effort. Contact the Welcome Center for more information.

Food Shelf: The Welcome Center Food Shelf, which opened in May, distributed 7995 lbs of food to 1431 persons during those 7 months in 2007. We operate as an emergency food shelf, providing support to those families whose needs are not fully met through other food resources (county food support, the Faribault Food Shelf at the West Mall, etc.). We see increasing numbers of families who need more help or help that provides for their cultural food needs. We are most thankful to the Jennie-O Turkey Store employees, who donated nearly $2000 in food and money during a recent food drive. We will be participating in the March MN Food Share Campaign and are looking for school classes, churches, businesses, or others who might be willing to organize a drive on our behalf. All that is collected will be matched by additional funds to bring more resources to the community. Please contact Bob at the Welcome Center for more information. We would also welcome volunteers who wish to help with the food shelf.

Carpentry Classes in Spanish: Classes begin Feb. 5 at the Welcome Center to provide a basic construction overview for Spanish-speaking persons interested in learning new skills or exploring career possibilities. We are still seeking several mentors willing to teach specific skills. There are also a few openings for participants. Call the Welcome Center for more information.

Community Garden: It is time to start thinking SPRING! Workgroups will be meeting to plan soon. If you would like to participate this year, contact the Welcome Center by March 15. Our Savior’s Lutheran Church has again offered a large plot. If anyone knows of other possible garden plots, please contact us, as we have more families who have expressed interest in gardening this year.

Community Forum: Plans are beginning for a community forum to examine issues related to immigration. Please watch for coming announcements. We believe that a collective conversation is needed to seek solutions to this complex reality.

Sharing Circles: Another round of circles will begin the week of March 24. Please consider participating or inviting others to join in this wonderful way of building community among us.

As we work to build a welcoming community environment where basic needs are met and all can participate, everyone’s gifts and wisdom are important. Please consider how you might share in the exciting work this year. WE NEED YOU!!

Bob Kell, Welcome Center

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration

Click on Title to download 11 x 17 Poster

Ten Myths About Immigration

For selected writings on Immigration and slideshow on "Ten Myths About Immigration" by Kathy Fennelly, Professor at Humphrey Institute click on the title.

Click on pdf below to enlarge.

Do You Have an Accent?

Prof. Joseph L. Mbele
St. Olaf College

If you are like me, with deep roots in Africa, you probably have heard Americans say you have an accent. You might feel that having an accent is not a good thing. Many new immigrants in America are embarrassed about their foreign accents and struggle to learn to speak like Americans. I met a Somali youth in Faribault, Minnesota, who felt that way. I think all this is rather unfortunate. I teach English at college level in America. With apologies to no one, I speak English with my distinctive Tanzanian accent.

An accent is an intrinsic aspect of spoken language. Nobody can say a word, let alone speak a language, without an accent. Basically, an accent is one’s distinctive way of speaking. Though an accent is an individual characteristic, it is also a collective one. Despite their individual differences, people from a given country or region tend to speak with a recognizable accent. I can tell a South African from a Nigerian, or an American from an Indian, based on the way they speak English. Those who know Americans say that Texans, for example, have their own accent, so do Californians, and Americans from other regions.

The accent we grew up with sounds normal to us. We might not even notice it. That we notice the accents of foreigners doesn’t mean that they alone have accents. American English sounds normal to Americans, but it is not a universal norm. English is an international language, with different varieties. With the world getting increasingly interconnected, people who ignore those varieties do so at their own peril, just as those who think they don’t need other languages. Our best option is to learn to hear and understand as many varieties and accents as possible.

Unfortunately, most people have not thought about the issue in this way. Immigrants who struggle to change their accents in order to “fit in” should think about this, so should those who complain about immigrants who speak with foreign accents. Why should someone with a proper Nigerian or Ugandan accent be pressured to speak like an American? Why should someone with a proper Jamaican or British accent be pressured to speak like an American? In Africa, no one asks foreigners to speak English like Africans: the British speak with their own accent; so do the Indians, the Australians and others. That, I think, is the way to go.
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Joseph L. Mbele, who teaches in the English Department at St. Olaf College, is the author of the book, Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences, available online at http://www.lulu.com/content/105001 or by sending an email to info@africonexion.com