Columbus, Ohio – 14 February, 2022: Over the past three decades, hundreds of thousands of Somalis have fled their land to find shelter from the ongoing civil war and political instability that broke out around the 1990s. More than 750,000 Somalis have found refuge in their neighboring countries, while many have made their way further north to seek shelter in western countries like the USA. However, these refugees continue facing challenges that make their lives very difficult in the new land.
The Somali Community Link is a youth initiative that has stepped up to provide the Somali community in Columbus with resettlement services such as case management, employment assistance, and housing legal advocacy. Their main funding is through donors, endowment funds, and governmental agencies.
They understand the challenges faced by Somali refugees and aim to help in a wide variety of ways. One of the main issues that immigrants and refugees face in a new country is the language barrier—it makes it harder to find a job, friends, or even buy food. The Somali Community Link provides SCL to teach them everything they need to integrate into society, such as providing positive American values while retaining their identity.
According to a spokesperson: “My own family immigrated to America decades ago, and I grew up with the struggles that every immigrant child faces—bad grades, bullying, and financial difficulties at home. It was extremely difficult for me any my family to adjust, and that’s why I aim to help refugee families from Somalia begin their lives in the land of the free without having to face additional hardships. By providing proper financial and emotional support, we hope to build a thriving Somali community in Central Ohio that can continue to grow and help each other.”
They also have a yearly summer youth employment program which helps teenagers find jobs to support themselves and their families with the help of the Ohio Department of Education and the Central Ohio Workforce Investment Corporation. They aim to help immigrants achieve financial independence through maintaining partnerships with community organizations and supporting entrepreneurship.