Minnesota Somali Youth Orgs Get Funding for Expensive Play Dates to Prevent Jihad
03/12/2016
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In 2011, I wrote a blog titled, ”Somali Immigrants in Minnesota: Import a Problem, Then Pay to Try to Fix It”. It considered the problems of gang formation and jihad behavior among young Somali immigrants. The centerpiece was the testimony of the St. Paul Police Chief to Congress, where he enthused over his excellent outreach to at-risk diverse youth, noting, “Our Police Athletic League has over 300 Somali American youth participants who compete in soccer, flag football, softball and volleyball games that are organized, coached and refereed by Saint Paul Police Officers.”

Maybe some Somali boyz responded positively to American sports, but the siren call of jihad still attracts young Minnesota-residing Muslims who leave to fight for Islam in Syria and Somalia.

But failure is no problem where liberal rescue programs are concerned: just keep repeating the same old unsuccessful approaches. And so more money is being poured into social spending for Somalis.

Wouldn’t it make more sense and be less expensive for taxpayers to stop importing Somalis altogether? Nobody benefits from this policy of importing unfriendly Muslims, except for moocher non-profits that hire members of the ethnic tribe in question. Furthermore, any spare money for do-gooder projects should be spent to help American kids who face a tough economy as they grow up.

Anyway, Somalis don’t appear to even like America. A roving interview of Minneapolis Somalis in 2015 found many would rather live under Islamic sharia law than the American Constitution.

Islam cannot be fixed or reformed. The best that can be done is to quarantine it, which should be the policy of our government. Hopefully the next administration will be less friendly to hostile Islam and will not welcome historic enemies inside the gates.

6 Minnesota Somali organizations receive grants to combat terrorism, Associated Press, March 10, 2016

Six organizations that work with Somali youth in Minnesota have been awarded $300,000 in grants as part of a federal pilot project designed to combat terrorism, the nonprofit group that is administering the funds announced Thursday.

The grant recipients include a youth sports group, a program that empowers Somali parents, an organization that plans to enhance youth employment opportunities and a group that addresses mental health issues for refugees. An additional $100,000 has been set aside to help with technical assistance, professional development and other resources with the goal of keeping the programs going on their own in the future.

Marcus Pope, director of partnerships and external relations for Youthprise, the nonprofit administering the money, said investing in youth development is crucial. He said Minnesota is home to many creative and bright Somali youth, but many of them face “formidable challenges, including a sense of alienation, a search for identity as new immigrants, unemployment and poverty that can open them to recruitment by extremist groups.”

Boston and Los Angeles are also participating in the federal pilot project, which the Obama administration launched in late 2014 to stamp out violent extremism.

Minneapolis’ program, called Building Community Resilience, focuses on the state’s large Somali community, which has been a target for terrorism recruiters. More than 22 men have left the state since 2007 to join al-Shabab in Somalia, and roughly a dozen people have left in recent years to join militants in Syria.

“We are excited that Youthprise has identified the first group of organizations to which it will make grants,” said Ben Petok, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota. “This is an important milestone for the hundreds of Somali community leaders and volunteers who have worked on this effort for the past 18 months.”

Last month, U.S. Attorney Andy Luger said he was working on additional funding, both federal and private. He pointed to a bill President Barack Obama signed into law in December that includes $50 million for efforts that combat terrorism as a possible source. Luger noted that $10 million of that appropriation is specifically for states’ efforts to prevent violent extremism, though it’s not yet known how much of that money will flow to Minnesota.

In a parallel effort, Minnesota lawmakers have also allocated $250,000 to programs designed to combat terror recruiting. The Department of Public Safety announced last month that it will soon start the process of awarding grants, with priority given to programs that will lead to long-term investment in communities most at risk. Meanwhile, House Democrats have also announced that they’ll push for another $2 million to dedicate to combatting terrorism in Minnesota.

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