Articles by SA STAFF

This year’s Somali Week at the beginning of July was filled with festivities and activities staged by local organizations. The festivities began with a soccer tournament, followed by a spoken word event at the Minnesota Historical Society, a basketball tournament and the Somali Independence Day festival. The Somali-American newspaper set up a booth at the intersection of Nicollet Avenue and Lake Street where we were able to capture a lot of special moments. Somali Week began a decade ago in 2007 as a single-day parade that grew to an activity-filled week, The Somali Independence day festival attracts around 50,000 people, spans 3 blocks on Lake Street and blocks traffic from 11am to 10pm. The event is attended mostly by Somali Americans, but many non-Somalis show up as well. One of the main attractions of the Somali Independence Day parade is the children’s play area which includes a large inflatable slide, face painting, henna designs, traditional animals and more.  This year’s event was held on July 1, a pleasant Saturday, a week after Ramadan, and most people were in a celebratory mood. As participants waved Somali flags, the parade kicked off in high gear around 2pm. At the intersection of Lake…

Facebook Founder eats iftar meal in Minneapolis Earlier this year, Mark Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Facebook, embarked on what he called “a great American road trip,” saying  his goal was to visit all 50 states and meet the people who make American great. The trip brought him to Minneapolis on the last 3 days of Ramadan where he shared an iftar meal with some local Somali Minnesotans. Here is his own Facebook account: “Tonight I had my first iftar dinner with a group of Somali refugees in Minneapolis. As a refugee, you often don’t get to choose which country you end up in. When I asked one  man who had spent 26 years in a refugee camp whether America now felt like home, he gave a simple and profound answer: “Home is where you are free to do what you want. Yes, this feels like home.” There are few places in the world he felt comfortable to be who he is: the country where he was born, and our country that values freedom. What a beautiful tribute to America.  Thanks to my hosts for being so gracious at the very end of Ramadan. I left impressed by your…

Waxa la yiri saddex abaarood baa jira: Abaar Rag Abaar Dumar iyo Abaar Geel Abaar Rag: Abaar rag waxa ugu weyn waa arin la’aan. Raggu hadduu meel wada joogo waxa haboon in ay arinsadaan oo wax isKu ogaadaan.  Hjaddii nin walba uu kelidii ama koox yari ay go’aan iska gaaraan iyagoo aan la tashan raggii ay meel wada joogeen,  arin kaasi wuxu keenayaa kala shaki wuxuuna ku dambeeyaa fashil iyo bur-bur. Weliba waxa dhici karta in dagaal uu ka dhex qarxo ragga arin isku maan dhaafa. Arintan wada tashiga ah waata keentay in dalalku ay yeeshaan gole wasiiru oo wada tashada iyo barlamaan lagaga dodo arimaha dalkaas. Inta badan wadamada ay xukumaan  niman digtaatoor ah way burburaan.  Sidaas darted raggu haddii uu wada tashado guul buu gaaraa.  Haddii ay wax qaldamaan cid gaar ah laguma eedeeyo. Abaar Dumar: Abaar dumar waa ubad la’aan. Dumarku wxay hoygooda hantaan marka ay ogyihiin in ubad ay u hayaan ninka ay wada joogaan.  Inta badan waxa dhacda in dumarku shaki badan ka qaadaan saygooda (ninkooda) haddii caruur labadooda isku xirta ay meesha ka maqanyihiin. Mar kasta  waxa ay Ku fikireysaa goorma ayuu naag kale kula guursandoonaa.  Naagta war-war qabta uma hagar baxayso ninkeeda. Ninkuna…

Laba fadhiga ayey ku fiicanyihiin: Dabka iyo Dumaraka. Dabka hadii kolba meel loo qaado wuuu bakhtiyaa. Haddii aad dhuxul qaadid dabeysha ayaa ku dhacaysa oo markiiba way baabaaysaa. Haddii aad qori ololaya qaadid isagana dabeysha ayaa u dhacaysa oo qorigii ololayey wuu dhamaanayaa. Dumarku waxay ku fiicanyihiin fadhiga. Dhaqanka Soomaaliyeed waxa caadu u ahaa in dumarku guryahooda joogaan. Naag ama gabar kolba meel lagu arko oo wareegeysa waxa loo arki jirey caado xun. Waxa laga yaabaa in naagtaas ama gabartaas wax xun aysan ku kicin, laakiin maadaama kolba meel lagu arkay iyadoo joogta waxa la oran jirey “way cag fududahay.” Laba socodka ayey ku fiicanyihiin: waa Dabeeysha iyo Roobka. Dabeyshu meel ma taagna oo wey socotaa. Socodkaa ay dabeyshu socoto wxay qaboojineysaa dadka, xoolaha iyo wixii kale ee qabow u baahan. Dabeyshaas wax qaboojineysa waxa loo yaqaanaa “layr/laydh.” Rookuna wuxuu ku fiicanyahay socodka. Haddii roobku meel keliya ka da’o, waxa dhacaysa in meelaha kale ay abaar noqodaan. Roobku meel marka uu ka muuqdo dadka meel kale jooga waxay Ilaahay ka baryaan in uu iyagana u shubo. Waxa la oran jirey farta ha ku fiiqina wuu inaga leexanayaaye. Daruuraha ayaa roobka keena, daruuruhuna way socdaan. Laba hadalka ayey ku fiicanyihiin: waa…

On Monday, May 15th, the Minnesota House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill that puts harsher penalties on the parents who let their daughters undergo the female genital mutilation (FGM) surgery. The bill passed through house in less than two weeks with a 124-4 vote. Female genital mutilation is a cultural practice that limits a female’s sexual pleasure by cutting off a portion of the clitoris. Representative Mary Franson, who sponsored the bill, said, “We’re not going to stand for little girls being harmed in such an egregious way. This topic may make you uncomfortable, but in no way is it as uncomfortable as what little girls are experiencing in the state of Minnesota and across the world.” According to a CDC study, first-generation immigrant girls from Egypt, Ethiopia and Somalia were most at risk to have their genitals ritually cut, which the health organization called “a traditional practice in various parts of the world since antiquity.” The same study suggested that there might be up to half a million girls in the US who are at risk of the FGM procedure. The bill was inspired by a recent event that made national news when two Minnesota girls were driven…

It is summertime and kids need to be engaged and entertained, but where do you take them? So in every monthly issue this summer, we will feature a local hotspot for children. This month it is the Children’s Museum in Saint Paul which has undergone a major renovation and will soon reopen to the public. Everything is new at the Minnesota Children’s Museum where families have been going to play for more than 35 years. The museum, located in downtown St Paul, will re-open in June with 10 new exhibits. It is a place for children to have fun and learn at the same time. Kids can slide down a giant slide and climb two tall towers in an experience called The Scramble. There also is a laser maze, a studio with real tools, and a pretend town where children can put on costumes to be a firefighter or a postal worker. For families with babies and toddlers, a new exhibit called Sprouts gives young children a place to safely crawl, climb and play with water. And the museum has created two new outdoor places to play. “We like to say this is an all new museum,” said Dianne Krizan,…