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Somali refugees follow Mexican immigration to Missouri community
By Wally Kennedy
Globe Staff Writer
Sunday, May 08, 2011
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NOEL, Mo. — Mohamed Abdi has stocked his African Grocery and Clothing Store with the kinds of things one might find in a market that caters to Muslims.
There are specialty foods, dark garments with hoods that Islamic women wear in public, prayer rugs and furniture styled to Mideastern tastes. Many of his products feature labels in Arabic.
“Business has been slow, but we have not been open for long,’’ Abdi said as he listened to a recording of the Quran being recited. “People come to shop here from all over, but it is mainly for the Somalis who live here.’’
But this is Noel, a town of 1,600 people that has already assimilated a large influx of Mexican workers who have found jobs processing chickens at the Tyson poultry complex, the economic linchpin of Noel.
The Mexican population — many said they prefer to be called Mexican rather than Hispanic — has put down roots, opening businesses and buying homes since their arrival here in the 1990s. Now, the recent arrival of a band of Somalis means even more changes for the community. Some Mexicans have recently left Noel in search of employment elsewhere.
Census figures show that Noel’s population is roughly 58 percent Mexican and 39 percent white. There were very few, if any, blacks living in Noel until the Somalis arrived.
‘We are refugees’
Abdi, who opened his store in a building that was built in 1899 on Noel’s Main Street, said Noel is now home to about 90 adults and 10 children from Somalia, a predominantly Muslim country on the east coast of Africa. He said the town also is home to a few people from Kenya.
“We are refugees,’’ he said. “We have come here for jobs. I want to do business with them and the local people, too. You know, we are the only place in Noel where you can buy clothes.’’
Abdi said he has not encountered any ill will from the residents of Noel.
But, some residents are wondering if more Somalian refugees are coming and questioning whether Tyson is being subsidized by the federal government to employ them. Others worry about the impact on local schools and on Noel’s housing, which is already in short supply.
Mayor James Carroll said, “When the Somalis arrived, I had a Mexican businessman tell me: ‘I now know how you felt when we came here.’ So far, it’s gone pretty well, but there are a lot of rumors floating around that need to be answered. One of them is that the company plans to bring 300 more Somalis here.’’
Some of those rumors were addressed Wednesday when Tyson officials invited county and community representatives to tour the plant and meet with them. Carroll, who attended, said, “I would describe it as a productive meeting. Tyson is not being subsidized by the government to employ the Somalis. It’s part of the company’s policy to hire anyone regardless of race or faith. They get the same pay as everyone else.’’
He also said the company told the visitors that it is not expanding production at the plant, which is at maximum employment. He said they were told that turnover requires the hiring of about 15 to 20 people on a weekly basis. The company employs about 1,300 people, generating an annual economic impact of nearly $43 million.
Gary Mickelson, spokesman for Tyson at Springdale, Ark., said, “The largest percentage of workers at the plant is white, followed by Hispanic, black and Pacific Islander. Over the past several years, about 100 Somalians have become part of our Noel staff. Some came from a Tyson plant in Kansas that had a reduction in operations. Others have heard about employment opportunities in Noel through word of mouth.
“Like other businesses, we sometimes qualify for tax credits for hiring people; however, we are not receiving credits for specifically hiring Somalians at Noel.’’
Mickelson said the company “strives to help them succeed on the job by providing effective training, a safe work environment and competitive pay and benefits. We also work with them to address questions they have about community-related matters.’’
Carroll said he encouraged the company to open a dialogue with the community to dispel rumors. He said he told them they were still dealing with fallout from when Hudson Foods operated the processing plant. Tyson acquired the Hudson Foods plant in January 1998.
“I let them know that they need to get more information out to the public. I told them they were dealing with a lot of the ill feelings left over from Hudson. It’s something that they inherited,’’ Carroll said.
In November 1996, The Los Angeles Times published a three-part report on “the chicken trail,’’ which focused on the recruitment of poultry workers along the U.S.-Mexican border. The report profiled Hudson Foods, which paid a south Texas recruiter $175 for each worker who showed up in Missouri. The stories told how workers made their way north on the “chicken trail’’ to work for Hudson and live in a converted motel, Ginger Blue Resort, along with other migrant poultry workers, for $45 per week per person. Five or more workers would live in a single room at the motel.
After a fire at the plant, Hudson expanded production. They brought into the community several hundred more workers without telling anyone what was happening. A new school that was constructed in Noel was not prepared to handle the influx of Spanish-speaking children. Mobile classrooms were brought in. Housing was insufficient. Some workers lived in camper shells.
Carroll said the Mexicans bought old properties in Noel and remodeled them.
“It was culture shock here in the ‘90s, but they had a good impact on the community,’’ Carroll said. “A huge part of the Mexican community actually bought property. The Somalis are more like temporary workers. They have no vested interest in the town.’’
Planning for change
That concern was echoed by Noel Alderwoman Nancy Zoerlin.
“There has got to be some financial incentive for Tyson to bring them in,’’ she said. “We don’t know whether they are getting a subsidy to do that. What they are doing is changing the demographics of everything. When you speak out about it, you are called a racist. That is not what this is about.
“We want to know what will happen before it happens so that we can plan for it. All at once, they were here. I’m talking about our schools and housing and services at the expense of our property taxes,’’ she said. “We’re a small town. What can we do? Do we have any say in this?’’
Zoerlin said some town residents recently met with an aide to U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo.
“We were told that Tyson has to hire these Somalis because none of the locals will pull the guts out of chickens. That is such a big lie,’’ she said. “There’s a recession going on. Local people need work.’’
City Clerk Denae Murphy said the Somalis are like any other group.
“Some of them are nice, some of them are not. ... I had one person demand that I give him a birth certificate. I don’t handle birth certificates, but he would not take ‘no’ for an answer.’’
‘This is culture shock’
Genaro Salas, a native of Mexico, came to Noel 16 years ago from Fort Worth, Texas. He was living in Rogers, Ark., when his wife spotted an ad for a business property that was for sale next to the Tyson plant in Noel. Salas bought the property and opened the Rio Alce convenience store.
“If you want to get ahead in this country, you have to work hard. If you do, it comes a lot easier,’’ he said.
Salas said he is concerned about how well the Somalis will fit into the culture of Noel. He recalled one incident in which a Somali man was giving one of his clerks a difficult time about something. He said he had to intervene.
“I told him that you do not talk to women like that in this country and that I have the right to refuse service to anyone. He looked at me and said: ‘What are you? A racist?’
“I could not believe that he accused ‘me’ of that,’’ Salas said. “This culture shock, well, it really is a big deal.’’
Salas said the arrival of the Somalis has made it difficult for some Mexicans to find work at the Tyson plant.
“It’s a small number that have left. If they don’t find a job when they look for one, they will go to another plant where they can find a job. I think they went to a hog plant in Iowa,’’ he said.
Carroll said the town will adjust to the Somalis who have moved there, but the transition will be challenging at times.
“You know we have a small population of American Samoans who own some chicken houses here in the county,’’ he said. “The other day I saw a woman with one of those round straw hats that they wear walking on Main Street. She was following a Somali woman who had covered her head.
“That image reminded me just how much Noel has changed.’’
Source: The Joplin Globe
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