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I'd just like to go on the record in support of the St. Paul delegations visit to Thailand. The little news coverage of the event, that I've had the time to look at, reconfirms my own positive feelings about the trip.
In today's pioneer press, Tim Nelson suggests that the trip is a political gamble for Mayor Kelly, given "significant" public opposition to the Hmong resettlement. We should not fool ourselves into believing that our entire community will be welcoming these new residents.
Having visited India two years ago and witnessed conditions that may rival those that they Mayor and his group are now witnessing, I am confident that the trip will be useful to all of them as political leaders and public servants. I believe that this will be true, regardless of whether or not we get the influx of refugees that we are expecting.
I also think that the Mayor's willingness to make this trip MAY suggest something about him as a political leader that might get lost in all of the debate over Twins stadiums and downtown developments.
(see below for links):
I hope that many of you will take time to read some of the coverage of this trip, because it is an opportunity for all of us to reflect on the role that St. Paul has played for many years as a destination for Hmong refugees.
I welcome your comments.......
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'We put a face on America'
http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/special_packages/hmong_journey/8090393.htm
St. Paul mayor sums up the significance of his delegation's visit with exiled Hmong living in a rural Thailand camp.
BY TIM NELSON
"And that may make the mayor's trip to Thailand, along with his bid for a Minnesota Twins stadium in St. Paul, one of the biggest political gambles of his career to date. Despite anti-immigrant sentiment following the terrorist attacks of September 2001 and the political repercussions of the recent recession, the Minnesota delegation made a rare, if not unique, visit to a foreign refugee settlement by American elected officials, and the Hmong were clearly heartened."
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St. Paul reaches out http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/local/8090392.htm
"For St. Paul School Board Member Kazoua Kong-Thao, once a Hmong refugee in the camp, Tuesday's emotional visit was the first time she had been back since she was a girl."
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St. Paul mayor tours Hmong refugee camp Matt Mckinney, Star Tribune
http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/4641489.html
"A crowd of Hmong men and women eager to leave their destitute village cheered for St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly as he arrived here Tuesday with a delegation of 19 Americans bearing gifts and assurances that a move to the United States is imminent."
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Tim Erickson Hamline Midway [EMAIL PROTECTED]
-- ================================================= Tim Erickson http://www.politalk.com St. Paul, MN - USA 651-643-0722 [EMAIL PROTECTED] ICQ: 105978430 =================================================
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