Somali Community Link

The Federal Republic of Somalia is in East Africa. The poverty-stricken country is home to 16 million people and is considered by the United Nations as one of the poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa.     The land rich in history and heritage and once regarded as the Switzerland of Africa faces a massive refugee crisis. Famine, civil war, and pirates are the most familiar images of Somalia. The country has suffered a tragic economic decline for decades, leaving millions of citizens without a home.   With the downfall of the Somali Democratic Republic, a socialist military government, in 1991, Somalia became a barren and impoverished country. According to the   United Nations  High Commissioner for Refugees, Somalia has witnessed a massive rise in refugees in the last 30 years. “Hundreds of thousands of people have fled Somalia because of political instability and a dangerous civil war that broke out in the 1990s. Today over 750,000 Somali refugees remain in n...

When it comes to natural disasters, children are the ones who suffer the most. Apart from a lifetime trauma, they end up losing precious years of their childhood that should have been spent playing and having fun rather than worrying about health and food. This is the story of every refugee child, whether they’re from Syria or Somalia. Every child’s fundamental human right to attain good education can help them create a better life for themselves. Between 2019 to 202, 1 million children  were born as refugees. And this number only continues to grow with time.   Here’s how education can help these children.   It Helps Them Become Independent Education is the key to teaching children how to become independent . Education provides these children with the tools needed to succeed in life and become something. It also helps them distinguish the right from wrong.   Moreover, the more children get independent, the more we can help other people in need with the donations. Whe...

Somalia has been the victim of war-stricken poverty, violence, corruption, crime, and civil unrest for the last few decades. With many nights of hopelessness, fear, starvation, and a lack of basic necessities like schooling, medication, food, or even clean running water, the future seems too far out of reach for most of the civilians. Thousands of Somali families have thus been forced to leave their home country due and finding respite elsewhere. Many asylum seekers and migrants now live with a high risk of forced eviction, violence, sexual assault, and abuse . Where did they flee to? A majority of the Somali refugees you fled their country are currently living in neighboring counties Ethiopia, Kenya, and Yemen, who have a long history of welcoming Somali refugees with open arms. Some have also made their way much further north into the land of the free—the USA. What happened in the civil war? The Somali civil war  took place in 1991—caused by a collapse of the government after the...

Refugees are struggling before they even leave their homes—that’s why they leave in the first place. However, going through an arduous journey and eventually arriving in the land of the free doesn’t mean the struggle is over. Immigrants and refugees face many barriers when they arrive on the shores of a new country. Here are some struggles that you should know about: Difficulties in learning and speaking the language Countries like the United States aren’t known for being multilingual, so arriving here and being unable to understand or speak English makes it virtually impossible to get a job, make friends, or complete basic tasks such as filling forms or buying food. Many immigrants and refugees take ESL classes  to combat this, but finding enough time between caring for kids and work can get difficult, especially if they aren’t literate in their own native tongue. Raising kids One of the biggest obstacles faced by immigrant parents is the challenge of raising their kids in an unfa...

Migrants often travel through multiple countries before they reach their destination; each has its own customs, cultures, and languages, which play a significant role in hindering or facilitating their journey. Being able to understand and communicate in a certain language allows you to access important information and make appropriate decisions. People who live in transit or refugee camps  have to face the difficulties of language barriers in their everyday life. Local authorities, volunteers, and humanitarian aid workers don’t usually speak their languages, so they have to rely on their friends or other refugees who have been through the same journey. Here’s how language barriers affect refugees: Loneliness and depression Language barriers can make refugees feel hopeless, anti-social, and isolated, leading to depression. Struggling to comprehend or speak a certain language makes it difficult for refugees to find friends, which can often make them a victim of bullying. Living in a...