Propaganda United
Posted by acorcoran on September 22, 2011
Between that Shelbyville film being shown around the country and the communal reading of the book—-Outcasts United, the refugee advocates of the migration industry are very very busy and it would be kind of fun (if one had the time) to study these two initiatives as examples of modern-day propaganda.
Now, I see in the wake of the graffiti incident in Concord, NH, that the good folks there can join in reading and discussing Outcasts United (just as Marylanders did last year) and as the folks in Roanoke, a refugee overloaded city in Virginia, are also doing now. (Some federal agency must be giving grants for this reading project!)
But, it might be a good idea for a balanced look to visit this post about what things are REALLY like in Clarkston,Georgia—home to the “outcasts.”
In case the story disappears, here is a description of a dilapidated, crime ridden refugee community in Clarkston where they have graffiti too:
The graffiti-adorned sign and boarded-up guard shack at the entrance of Brannon Hill Condominiums are symbolic of the rest of the residential community just off of Memorial Drive near Clarkston.
Just past the entrance, rubble from a condominium building leveled by the community’s homeowners association in 2006 has weeds growing in it. Another building, devastated by a fire in May, is in need of demolition.
Scores of units have been uninhabitable for years and are boarded up. But in many of those condominiums, residents say the boards have been removed by homeless people seeking shelter.
One problem is the lack of money in the community, which is populated mostly by Somalian refugees.
“There is very little income here,” said property manager Haji Said.
The 30-acre site in 1973 was once a vibrant community with 31 buildings, 368 residential units, a pool and two tennis courts.
Now, due to the cost of ongoing maintenance and liability insurance, the pool is filled in with grass growing on top. Grass-filled cracks cross the tennis courts—now converted to basketball courts surrounded by a rusty, dilapidated chain-link fence plagued by holes and weeds.
I doubt you will hear this part of the story at the book club meetings.
6 Responses to “Propaganda United”
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TJ said
I think people like Ann would ideally like to see refugee resettlement stopped altogether and a good way to sell such an idea is to call for ‘private sponsorship’ which technically means the program would be severely reduced or stopped altogether. So it is a smart way of calling for an end to the program without saying so loudly.
acorcoran said
TJ, I’ll make you the same offer I’ve made to others. You can write a guest post and tell me (all of us) why American taxpayers should be responsible for the care of third worlders brought to their towns and cities when we have plenty of poor Americans already. Why should some struggling family man trying to bring up his own kids be taxed to support refugees? I don’t want to hear the guilt trip argument though, or the what would Jesus do mumbo jumbo (most in the open borders movement are not even practicing Christians). And, while you are at it, tell us too what is the appropriate level of diversity.
Write your essay in a comment here and then rather than post it as a comment, I’ll make it a prominent guest post.
or, you can send it in the body of an e-mail to Ann@vigilantfreedom.com
ClarkstonGA said
You obviously haven’t read the book you refer to as “propoganda.” Everything in the article you cite is *in the book*. The book talks about the shortcomings of the resettlement agencies, violence in Clarkston committed by both refugees and Americans, and if anything, suggests that resettlement causes lots of complications. (The book details problems the police have doing their jobs when they can’t communicate with refugees and the problems in the schools, along with a bunch of other issues.) If you’d read it, you’d know all that, but instead you seem to believe it’s some sort of feel good Disney story, which it definitely is not. The refugee soccer team doesn’t even win in the end. Try reading it before you bash it.
acorcoran said
I call it propaganda whenever a government program uses taxpayer money and sponsors a mind-meld reading project.
ralph parker said
Having worked in Clarkston as a volunteer for 20 years with refugees, I will admit that the housing situation is not good. Brannon Hill has always been a problem (actually it is also not in the city limits of Clarkston). Agencies have never put refugees there.
The mandate for safe and secure housing cannot occur in many metro areas. Leases must be in the name of the refugee and many better complexes in nicer areas will not rent to refugees who are not employed
The agencies are never on the leases. There is limited choice especially when you consider cost. A 2 bedroom needs to be in a $600-$700 range. If the mandate is for better housing, there needs to be more funds from somewhere. In Clarston, apartment complexes like Willow Branch and Southern Place are unkempt and scary. I am so sad when I visit these places, which years ago were better but not by much
There is little motivation for the landlords to do much and the county is not vigilant. When i see where folks are beingput in the Bronx or Uptown Chicago, I cringe.
One of the agencies is placing folks in surburban Roswell, Geoergia a upper income area with a large number of apartments in a Hispanic area. While the aprtments are not great, they are fairly clean and the town has great schools and parks. The crime rate is low, but there have been a couple of break ins in the apartments aimed at refugees.
There is no conflict between Hispanics and refugees as far as I can tell, unlike the various issues in the African American community.
It is great to feel that the government shoudl be out of the refugee business, but the practical side is that churches and private donors cannot handle this. If left to them, there would be no program at all.
I am of the opinion unlike most of your readers that I as a taxpayer want my money spent on refugee support. If I had my way there would be conditional support for a year but the agencies would need to be more accountable or an alternative mechanism might be an answer
By the way, there is nothing wrong with being a “do gooder”. More people should try it. It is my reposnibility to help othere be it refugees or Americans. Yes I feel good when i
i help, but it is not my focus. If I can do a little to make these families more comfortabla and have a American friend, then it is comforting.
I sometimes wonder how many of your readers reach out and volunteer in some direct cause or through a church. I was brought up to believe there are always people worse off and we have an obligation to assist and my family was low income.
Ann- I also stil struggle with generalizations about Muslims and particularly Somalis. I am cognizant of the issues, but in reality does anyone really know what % of the community is radicalized. Your approach defames many who are trying to make it such as the individulas I have written on previously.
Clearly the refugee program is not working and despite the Lugar report little is happening The faults lie all around with IOM, ORR, the agencies and the private sector. It is becoming more apparent that so many refugees are ill prepared and I have been told many times that the cultural orientations are lacking. No wonder so many are suprosed when they get here. Above all they came for freedom and safety. They have the freedom but not the safety.
As much as I hate this, I would hold refugee resettlement or reduce it until reforms are made and the economy improves.
acorcoran said
Ralph, As you have heard me say on many occasions, it’s do-gooders who use other peoples money (taxpayers) to do their “good works” that I have a problem with. And, how do you or anyone know what critics of high immigration numbers do with their own lives—maybe they help poor Americans—but that isn’t your business even if it makes you somehow feel better about yourself—to look for selfishness in others.
The program is rotten to the core! At least you don’t have your head in the sand about it. Someone has to speak up or nothing will change. Most people are too chicken to speak up because surely they will be called racist xenophobes. I’ll continue to show the dark side of the program until honesty about it is spoken by those promoting refugee resettlement.