Abdi Nor Iftin’s excellent microaggression column rang a bell in my head (“Through My Lens: Verbal microagressions are common and painful,” July 8). I’m tired of women and non-white people talking about the “white man problem” in this country. Sometimes I’ll be walking down Centre Street or Washington Avenue in Bath and some woman will […]
Through My Lens
Posted inThe Forecaster
Letter: Questions reflect curiosity, respect for people
After reading the column about verbal microaggressions, I am stunned (“Through My Lens: Verbal microagressions are common and painful,” July 6). It has gotten to the point that most anything a person says is sure to somehow offend another person. I can’t understand how “Where are you from?” turned into a bad question. I am […]
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Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: Verbal microagressions are common and painful
“Your English is great for an immigrant. You don’t have that thick African accent.” This is a statement I heard recently that is one of the microaggressions we hear in our everyday lives. It hurts when Mainers think they should put their dogs in the basement when I visit. Or not bring red and white […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: Biden needs to keep his promise to refugees
June 20 was World Refugee Day, but unlike the past few years, the number of displaced people surpassed 100 million this year, meaning 1 in 78 people on Earth has been forced to flee their homes. It’s a dramatic milestone that few could have expected a decade ago. President Joe Biden committed to resettling 125,000 […]
Posted inThe Forecaster
Letter: Iftin should further explore solutions to gun violence
I enjoy reading Abdi Nor Iftin’s columns. His perspective is interesting, he writes well and I learn new things. After recently reading his book, “Call Me American,” I wondered how he might view the gun issues plaguing America. Thus, his June 9 piece, “Conversations about gun violence should begin at home,” immediately caught my attention. […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: The conversation about gun violence should begin at home
It is time parents start talking to their kids about gun violence by using examples from parents in war-torn countries. I grew up during the civil war in Somalia. Weapons were everywhere – all kinds of them, easily available for young men like myself. Yet, guns were never allowed at home; we were not permitted […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: A proud American reports from abroad
I sit in a Starbucks sipping an Americano in Limerick, Ireland, as I write this piece. The music in the background is American jazz. It’s almost entirely like sitting in a Starbucks in the United States except I have to say, “I am from the United States,” when the barista asks where I am from. […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: Thanks to refugees, Somalia on the cusp of political change
A presidential election takes place in Somalia May 15, when more than 270 members of the Somali parliament who were voted into office last week will choose the new president by indirect elections. More than half of these members of parliament are former refugees who dared to return to Somalia despite the constant threats against […]
Posted inThe Forecaster
Letter: Iftin’s assessment of LePage is spot on
“Immigrants must see past Paul LePage’s false friendship” (“Through My Lens,” April 27). Exactly! Abdi Nor Iftin is calling out LePage for his blatantly dishonest suggestion that he is a “friend to the immigrants.” Abdi correctly points out that LePage sees Black Mainers “as nothing less than illegal people, bringing drugs into the state, and […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: Immigrants must see past LePage’s false friendship
Here we go again. A few weeks ago, Paul LePage appeared alongside immigrants at their so-called “multicultural community center” in Portland, just a mile from where we stood to protest against him a few years back. This time, LePage seemed to present a different tone to rebrand himself the so-called “New LePage who is a […]