Omaha's Sudanese Community

[Coyote]

Solutions sought for Sudan refugees

Omaha's Sudanese population has grown into one of the country's largest, if not the largest, since the first Sudanese refugee arrived here 10 years ago.

While multiple organizations have started to help the newcomers, the competition has created confusion.

And concerns of health, employment and the isolation of women remain rampant.

That was the consensus Saturday of about 85 participants drawn to a forum titled "Omaha and the Sudanese: A Dialogue Towards Solutions."

It was the first outreach by the University of Nebraska at Omaha black studies department to the Sudanese community.

Dorian Brown Crosby, event coordinator whose research focuses on African women, expects Omaha's Sudanese to have an increasingly vital role in framing refugee public policy.

"There are international eyes watching," she said.

Brown Crosby said she was surprised upon moving to Omaha in 2002 to find so many Sudanese. She estimates the local population at 7,000. Many were initially relocated by the United States in other cities and then chose to move to the area for better jobs or a larger social network.

Brown Crosby said she organized Saturday's forum after finding many public servants and service providers uninformed about the refugees' needs.

No firm solutions emerged during the two-hour session, but hope for more collaboration did.

"This was like the first day of a wonderful college course," said Rivkah Sass, director of Omaha's public libraries. "I want to come to the second class. We need to do this again."

Brown Crosby said she'll use the event's sign-up sheets as the start of a network that could meet periodically. She also plans to create a Web site that would list service providers and other information on African refugees.

Featured speakers at the event included Sudanese refugees Mary Obat and Elizabeth Ajango; public health nurse Sandra Elsea; and UNO political scientist David Chand, a former ambassador in Sudan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs who came to Omaha two years ago.

Among challenges still facing Sudanese women, Obat said, is isolation. Many don't speak English, are illiterate in their own native language and haven't learned to drive.

"This kind of situation has made them depressed," she said.

Medical providers should be educated on dealing with the effects of female circumcision, Obat said, and trained on culturally appropriate ways to encourage preventive exams.

Elsea, a nurse with the Douglas County Health Department, said she began working with the local Sudanese population about seven years ago and was shocked to find so little information about the culture of the local Nuer and Dinka tribes.

"I just had to learn by the seat of my pants," she said. "I continue to learn every day."

Positive tuberculosis tests are among health concerns Elsea said she's dealt with. Preventive medication is required, but some refugees don't understand the importance of taking medicine when signs of sickness aren't visible, she said.

Carol Terrell, director of the Nebraska Center Faith Based and Community Initiatives, said she was glad to see Saturday's interest to collaborate. She said the multitude of agencies that come forward with promises to help has caused confusion about where to go and division among the population.

Tor Kuet, one of the first Sudanese to arrive in Omaha and director of the Southern Sudan Community Association, said awareness of his community's needs likely dwindled as the Sudanese population lost its newness and fewer educational forums were held.

"This is recognition that more is needed," he said. "It's a good start."

[Swift]

Awesome. I hope someday Omaha has a "Little Sudan" district.

[jjjjhskr]

This is great for adding to the diversity of the metro. A sudanese market area / little Susan would be good. I know this sounds way too liberal for many readers but I hope the community creates the right resources to help them be able to be successful (and for our more conservative readers) and good additions to the tax base. I think this community grew faster than expected and they are just now getting the suppport that they need.

On a side note, I think half of them work at Harrah's casino. They all seem very nice/friendly and many have worked there for years (not that I go there much).

Quite a few Omahan's weren't happy with what is going on in South O - transitioning from a former european immigrant area to a Mexican/Central and South American community but what is going on in South O now is going to be great for Omaha. I cannot wait to see how the changes on 24th st. end up. They seem to be creating a very vibrant community while retaining references to the immigrants that have gone before. (and I'm a former AND proud S.O.B. - South Omaha Boy).

[Coyote]

On a side note, I think half of them work at Harrah's casino. They all seem very nice/friendly and many have worked there for years

Quite a few Sudanese work at the Nebraska Medical Center. I also find them to be very friendly especially once they get to know you. When you hear a few of their stories - I am sure they are doubly glad they are just out of Sudan. Funny thing though - I don't know if I have ever met a Sudanese woman.

[DTO Luv]

Although the area is devoid of any sort of ethnicity (Sudanese or other) the area around the TAC building has lots of Sudanese people. Omaha has a large African (other) population. Our church has a few hundred or more Togoese and Sudanese people. There are so many of them that they even have get together of services in there own languages and to traditional Togoese things like singing and dancing.

[Coyote]

Our church has a few hundred or more Togoese and Sudanese people. There are so many of them that they even have get together of services in there own languages and to traditional Togoese things like singing and dancing.

I know that the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection on N 30th has quite a few Sudanese members and have their own services. The Sudanese Bishop even visited Omaha last year.

[Raraavis]

Awesome. I hope someday Omaha has a "Little Sudan" district.


They could have daily shows for the tourist where the Muslims chase all the Christians out of the district, or more seriously a museum documenting the ongoing genocide in the Sudan that the whole world is ignoring.

[Swift]

Or a section of town dedicated to traditional Sudanese architecture, cuisine and culture, which would make more sense and not be filled with hate or stereotypical american ideas about how the rest of the world is.

[Raraavis]

Or a section of town dedicated to traditional Sudanese architecture, cuisine and culture, which would make more sense and not be filled with hate or stereotypical american ideas about how the rest of the world is.

Swift, do you know anything about recent Sudanese history? Do you know the reasons why the Sudanese that are currently in Omaha fled their country? Do you know what is going on today in the Sudan? Your post would indicate that you do not. You shouldn't accuse people of hate when you have no idea what you are talking about.

[GoWest]

Or a section of town dedicated to traditional Sudanese architecture, cuisine and culture, which would make more sense and not be filled with hate or stereotypical american ideas about how the rest of the world is.

Swift, do you know anything about recent Sudanese history? Do you know the reasons why the Sudanese that are currently in Omaha fled their country? Do you know what is going on today in the Sudan? Your post would indicate that you do not. You shouldn't accuse people of hate when you have no idea what you are talking about.

Maybe Swift is merely suggesting that we focus on the positive aspects of Sudanese culture rather than the negative. These people that have left Sudan for America have turned their back on the genocide going on there. Now lets give them a chance to teach us about the positives their culture has to offer. I refused to accept the fact that some cultures have no redeeming value.

[Raraavis]

Or a section of town dedicated to traditional Sudanese architecture, cuisine and culture, which would make more sense and not be filled with hate or stereotypical American ideas about how the rest of the world is.

Swift, do you know anything about recent Sudanese history? Do you know the reasons why the Sudanese that are currently in Omaha fled their country? Do you know what is going on today in the Sudan? Your post would indicate that you do not. You shouldn't accuse people of hate when you have no idea what you are talking about.

Maybe Swift is merely suggesting that we focus on the positive aspects of Sudanese culture rather than the negative. These people that have left Sudan for America have turned their back on the genocide going on there. Now let?s give them a chance to teach us about the positives their culture has to offer. I refused to accept the fact that some cultures have no redeeming value.

I never said or even implied that Sudanese culture had no redeeming value. The first part of my original post was in jest which I thought was fairly obvious. The second part was serious anything that can be done to focus the worlds attention on the ongoing genocide in Sudan would be fantastic.

I do not think the Sudanese in Omaha have turned their backs on the genocide in the Sudan, many are working with groups desperately trying to stop the slaughter. I just find it disturbing for people to talk about the Sudanese population in Omaha without at least acknowledging the Civil War that brought them here. They are victims of an ongoing genocide that is being ignored by the world. People talk about how tragic the story of the "Lost Boys" is yet they ignore the fact the same thing is still going on.

I welcome the Sudanese to Omaha, I think it is fantastic that Omaha has become the center for America's Sudanese population. However this is not just another group of immigrants. It is as if Jews fleeing friend Germany move to your town and you say "Oh, isn't this wonderful we may get a nice Jewish district in our city" ignoring the fact that the Concentration Camps are still open.

I was not making fun of Swift in my first post I was attempting to use humor to point out that there was a more serious issue in play then Omaha's "Little Sudan". It is only after I was called racist that I became offended.

[Swift]

I was refering to sweeping generlization of all Muslims as violent anti-Christians. Which, having personally known a handful of muslims, is not true.

[Coyote]

Omaha Picked As One Of 3 National Sites For Sudanese Vote

Refugees from Southern Sudan will be able to vote in Omaha on an independence referendum that could split Africa's largest country. The Lincoln Journal Star reports that Omaha is among three U.S. voting sites selected because of its large population of Sudanese refugees. The other sites are in Washington, D.C., and Phoenix.

[iamjacobm]

Decent read about the Sudanese in Omaha and how basketball is important to community building.

https://sports.vice.com/en_us/article/f ... for-change