RESOURCES/CONTACTS/EXPERTS:
Harvard Nieman Foundation: http://journalistsresource.org/studies/government/immigration/
The Brazilian Immigrant Center (BIC) which is located in Allston. Their website is www.braziliancenter.org
The Massachusetts Alliance for Portuguese Speakers is in both Cambridge and Allston and their website is
www.maps-inc.org
The PAIR Project is another (contact the ED, Sarah Ignatius, Mondays through Wednesdays),
Greater Boston Legal Services’ immigration unit.
http://www.miracoalition.org/ At MIRA: Sarang Sekhavat ssekhavat@miracoalition.org
speaking with Frank Aug 1 10 am
Ai-jen Poo National Domestic Workers Alliance immigrant domestic workers in homes, schools, businesses – labor bill of rights
Catholic charities: Marjean Perhot, the director of refugee and immigration for Catholic Charities, and
Richard Chacon, director of the state’s Office of Refugees and Immigrants.
Jason Crowe (left msg 8/27)
Catholic Charities of Greater Boston
75 Kneeland Street
Boston, MA 02125
Phone: 617-451-7979
Fax: 617-629-5768
Web site: Refugee and Immigration Services
International Institute of Boston
- Web site: International Institute of New England
- International Institute of New England, Boston Office
- One Milk Street
- Boston, MA 02109
- Phone: 617-695-9990
- Fax: 617-695-9191
http://obcfboston.com/events.html Overseas Burmese Christian Assoc
Connie Barker, ACEDONE, Somalis in Roxbury. Youth in Charge, Peace in Focus
Madaal Center.
larger East African community Youth in Charge youth will be partnering with Kate Fedosova of Peace In Focus which is based here in Boston.
Sudanese – Arlington –
http://www.sudaneseeducationfund.org/ Arlington
Madeline Cronin – Immigration Attorney
The Haitian Reporter – Foury
Immigration Services US govt:
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis
http://www.massresources.org/immigrant-agencies.html
Feet In Two Worlds http://news.feetintwoworlds.org/
WHAT’S NEW IN IMMIGRATION????
-Asians surpass Latinos as percent of immigrants NBC News story 6/18 or 19
-October 23rd. Tom Wolfe novel on Miami Immigration/Race will be published
–Whites Account for Under Half of Births in U.S.By SABRINA TAVERNISE
Non-Hispanic white births are no longer a majority in the United States, a tipping point that has implications for politics, the economy and a nation’s identity.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/17/us/whites-account-for-under-half-of-births-in-us.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20120517
-WBUR stories: Invisible Communities
http://www.wbur.org/search?q=%22invisible+communities%22
-(NOW DEFUNCT) Ethnic Newswire: Ellen Hume at MIT
http://civic.mit.edu/projects/community/new-england-ethnic-newswire-newz
-NBC nightly July 30 London multicultural stefanie gosk
http://www.cityofboston.gov/newbostonians/about/
COMMUNITIES: 28% of the city OF BOSTON’S population is foreign born
1. china – Allston-Brighton
2. haiti – Hyde Park
3. Dominican Republic
4. Vietnam-Dorchester
5. El Salvador – East Boston
6. Cape Verde
7. Colombia- East Boston
8. Jamaica – Dorchester, Hyde Park
9. Brazil – Allston-Brighton
10. Mexico
11. Ireland
12. Guatemala
Former immigrant enclaves of North End, South Boston, largely white yuppies.
Haitians in Boston 3rd largest in US
Russia – Allston-Brighton, BROOKLINE
Framingham – Brazil
Chelsea
Cambridge
Lawrence
New Bedford
Lynn
Lowell – Cambodians
BOSTON Five Neighborhoods with significant changes in foreign born/immigrant pop in past 20 years:
East Boston
Hyde Park
Roslindale
Allston-Brighton
Dorchester
Diversity greater than any period in the city’s history, 28% of the residents are foreign born
170,000 residents – Up 46% since 1990
Peak of foreign born 1910 when 36% of residents foreign born
1970 14% of city foreign born
Generational sea change
Boston is 5th in percent of foreign born of the 25 biggest cities in American
1980 68% of city was white
2000 49%
Few are of European origin
ISSUES:
Educational disparities foreign born v. native born
bilingual ed, immersion
English as the national language
Economic disparities – service industry
Domestic work, house cleaning and day care – no union, no rights
Skilled immigrants and economic growth vs. unskilled
Housing
RMV Identity cards legislation
Legality, citizenship, green cards
Voter Registration drives
Asylum seekers
Non-American-born should run for President
Intersecting with the medical world: translation in emergency rooms, kids being medical advocates for parents,
Chinese or other traditional/eastern medicine vs. western medicine.
Read: Spirit Catches You, Henrietta Lacks.
Rise of ethnic foods: On Point on Mexican Food april 2012
Stereotyping, identity, racist attacks, integration
Slavery, human trafficking, foreign brides
Immigrants and Bicycling – Safety – Journo Resource.
Micro-insurance – Journo Resource.
Prof. Athletes relationship to ethnic communities – Ortiz and the DR
Sports we don’t play here – cubbardy, south Asia
Events:
Citizenship Ceremony?
Immigrant’s Day at the State House
Voter Reg. Drive
Religious Services http://businesses.wickedlocal.com/MA-Boston/Ethnic-Churches
Haitian churches: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/03/07/haitians_turn_to_churches_for_comfort/
Sporting events or pick up games at a park
Cultural Festivals
The Greek Festival at the Dormition of the Virgin Mary Church in Somerville is September 7-9. They always have a very extensive dessert selection in addition to the usual stuff.
http://www.mydormitionchurch.org/gree…
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The Serbian Festival at St Sava in Cambridge (on Rt 16 near Matignon and the Ecole Bilingue) is going to be 9/22-23 and includes a pig roast as well as other foods. Looks like they are looking for volunteers, including meat preparation if you want to be involved in a pig roast.
http://www.stsavaboston.org/festival….
Armenian Memorial Church
32 Bigelow Avenue
Watertown, MA 02472
617-923-0498
North End Italian Religious Feast: September 9, 2012 – Santa Rosalia di Palermo
1:00 pm – Procession only – North Square
South Boston Polish Festival. They don’t have any events listed, but it was held in mid-September last year (9/18)
Brazilian Independence Day Festival which will be held on September 9th (http://verdeamarelo.org/festival/), the festas juninas and julinas are much more “by Brazilians for Brazilians.” The Independence Day Festival goes out of its way to provide activities for an English speaking audience, there are musicians and dancers, as well as volunteers that don’t even speak Portuguese, it happens when (Brazilian) students are returning to local universities, and its publicized in traditional event calendars (Boston Globe Magazine, Globe Weekend edition, etc).Brazilian Independence Day Outdoor Festival
Sunday, Sep 9 12:00p
DCR Herter Park, Brighton
12 pm Official opening – performance of the Brazilian National Anthem Festival Opening Parade with Marcus Santos and AfroBrazil, children’s activities (face painting, drawing, pony ides), Boston Museum of Scien
South Boston Street Festival (southie, -formerly very Irish, now more yuppie
Sept. 15, 2012, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Over 100 local merchants, artists, and other organizations will be present at the 13th annual festival on East Broadway (between I and L Streets), featuring food, live music performances, and children’s activities.
Many of the festivals in Lowell (Folk Fest 7/27-29, Southeastern Asian Water Festival 8/18) have food booths which are popular with hounds,
Carnival 9/9 Cambridge Carnival in Kendall Square is 9/9.) also feature a variety of food boths.
West Indian Carnival (in September) at Franklin park. (already happened 8/25??)
September 21-23
NH Highland Games
Loon Mountain
Lincoln, NH
603 229-1975 | nhscot.org
Join the largest gathering of Scottish musicians, dancers, pipers, athletes and cultural artisans in the northeast with over 60 Scottish clans and societies gather each year to celebrate their heritage. Music, games, bagpipe bands and fiddle competitions.
Arts Emerson “The World on Stage” series
From connie barker:
I have been thinking about different immigrant communities in the Boston area the ones that come immediately to mind are the Brazilian, Haitian, Cape Verdean, East African, Vietnamese and the communities from different Central American countries. We do have a growing number of Iraqis and Bhutanese but they are coming over primarily with refugee status.
My gut feeling is that it some organizations will be wary of having students interview the people they serve. I know from my own experience that it took time to build strong relationships and gain that trust. Unless your students plan on interviewing staff members only, it could be helpful to have them also volunteer at the organizations in order to build those relationships.
In terms of top areas of concern for immigrants right now, the impending implementation of the Secure Communities Act in Massachusetts is a really big issue right now. Workers’ rights and immigration reform are on-going big issues. The youth I work with feel that school reform is one of the biggest issues facing Somalis.
In regards to Secure Communities and worker’s rights/immigration reform, I don’t actually know too much about those topics. I just know that they are big issues. MIRA and The Brazilian Immigrant Center’s websites would probably have background on those issues.
http://www.braziliancenter.org
Also, you may want to check out Centro Presente, www.cpresente.org/ They organize around immigrant rights.
Another interesting group is the Student Immigrant Movement – http://www.simforus.com/
They are a immigrant youth led organization who fight for the rights of undocumented youth, they have been particularly active around the Dream Act.
In regards to the youth I work with and their involvement with school reform, they are most concerned with ELL students and their experience in Boston Public Schools. Many East African students who arrive from Kenya or Ethiopia have little or no formal education. Many also lack English. Their needs are not being met by BPS, they are often inadequately assessed and they are often placed in special education or grade levels that are inappropriate for them. Our youth also feel that BPS needs to develop the cultural competency to effectively educate their immigrant and refugee youth.
One of the major issues facing the Somali community is that their is no recent tradition of civic participation in Somalia and so parents don’t understand their roles and rights in their children’s education. ACEDONE focuses a lot on educating parents to advocate for a more responsive school system for their children.
The community would l like to see a more culturally competent school system with a better assessment process and Somali teachers. In terms of the larger issue of school reform, they would also like to see better teacher evaluations and more student and parent voice in the schools.
I hope this helps!
Connie
jo435.wordpress.com 